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Typical  View  on  the  Lower  Illinois  River. 


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I  HAM  i91 


REPORT  OF  THE 


Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission 


ON 


The  Illinois  River  and  Its  Bottom 

Lands 


With  Reference  to  the  Conservation  of 


Agriculture  and  Fisheries  and  the  Control  of  Floods 


BY 


archival  COT 

00  NOT  tffiOllAT 


JOHN  W.  ALVORD  and  CHARLES  B.  BURDICK, 

Consulting  Engineers 


[Printed  by  authority  of  the  State  of  Illinois.] 


Springfield,  III. 

Illinois  State  Journal  Co.,  State  Printers. 

19  15 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


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PART  I. 

Summarized  Findings  and  Conclusions . 


PAGE. 
...  11 


PART  II. 

The  Illinois  River  Watershed  and  Its  Hydro-Geology .  19 

General  Description  and  Size  of  Watershed — The  River  Bottoms — Geology. 

PART  III. 

Flow  and  Gage  Heights — Dams — Submerged  Lands .  24 

Prevailing  Gage  Heights— Natural  Flow— Flow  of  Chicago  Drainage  Canal — 
Navigation  Dams — Survejr  of  1902-1904 — Submerged  Lands. 

PART  IV. 

Agriculture .  54 

Growth  of  Agriculture — Growth  of  Levee  Districts — Principal  Data  of  Levee 
Districts — Investigation  of  Districts  and  Levees — Productivity  of  Agricultural 
Lands. 


PART  V. 


Fisheries  . 


64 


Growth  in  Production — Fish  Prices— Factors  Affecting  the  General  Welfare  of 
Fishes — Fish  Yield  by  Districts — Possibilities  of  Fish  Culture  compared 
with  Illinois  River  Yields. 


PART  VI. 


§ 

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Past  and  Future  Floods, 


84 


Flood  of  1904- — Flood  of  1844 —  Flood  of  1913 —  Probable  Floods  of  the  Future — 
Flood  Rates  on  other  Streams — Artificial  and  Natural  Conditions  Affecting 
Flood  Rates — Comparison  by  Ratios — Fuller’s  Formula  Applied  to  Ratios — 
Conclusions  as  to  Flood  Rates. 


PART  VII. 


Future  Flood  Heights. 


102 


i — 1 

i — J 

n 


Computed  Flood  Profiles — Values  in  Flow  Formula  During  Flood  of  1904 — 
Effect  of  Trees  on  Flood  Values — Values  in  Flow  Formula  During  Flood  of 
1913 — Flow  Values  Used  in  Computations — Flow  Values  Observed  on  Other 
Rivers — Estimate  of  Future  Flood  Heights — Proper  Levee  Heights. 

PART  VIII. 

Discussion  of  Remedies . 113 

General  Principles — Flood  Abatement  by  Storage — Tendency  of  Levees  to  Increase 
Flow’  Rates — The  Future  River  Valley — Effect  of  Storage  on  Flow — Proper 
Levee  Heigts  without  Storage — Proper  Levee  Heights  wdth  Apex  Storage — 
Bases  of  Comparison — New  Expenditures  with  High  Levees  and  No  Storage — 
New  Expenditures  wdth  Storage — Comparative  Income  and  Expense — Other 
Considerations — Effect  of  Waterway  Projects — Increased  Width  between 
Levees — Storage  in  the  Tributaries — Flood  Protection  Conclusion — Best  Use 
of  Remaining  Lakes  and  Lands — Inclosure  of  Meandered  Lakes — Clean  Banks 
— Game,  Fishing  and  Hunting — Cooperation  w’ith  the  Sanitary  District — 
Acknowledgement. 

PART  IX. 

Appendix . 136 

Report  of  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  to  the  Governor  and  Attorney  Gen¬ 
eral  on  Thompson  Lake.  Recommendations  of  the  Commission  Regarding 
the  Removal  of  Dams. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PART  I. 

^Typical  View  on  the  Lower  Illinois  River . Frontispiece 

figure 

NO.  PART  II.  PAGE. 

1.  Map — Watershed  of  the  Illinois  River .  2 

PART  III. 

2.  Profiles  of  Water  Levels  and  River  Bottom .  27 

3.  Diagram — Prevailing  Gage  Heights  at  Various  Places .  27 

4.  Diagram — Gage  Heights  at  Grafton,  LaGrange  and  Peoria  and  Hydrograph 

at  Peoria .  29 

5.  Map  of  Illinois — Average  Annual  Precipitation .  36 

5A.  Views  of  LaGrange  Lock  and  Dam .  39 

6.  Map — Illinois  River  and  Flood  Plain  below  LaSalle . 

7.  Diagram — Prevailing  Heads  at  Navigation  Dams .  41 

8.  Diagram — Head  at  Dams  and  Rise  of  Tail  Water .  42 

9.  Diagram — Rating  Curves .  45 

10.  Profile — Normal  Relations  of  Water  Elevations . 

11.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Kampsville  Dam  to  Mouth  of  River .  46 

12.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Mile  52.39  to  Kampsville  Dam .  47 

13.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — LaGrange  Dam  to  Mile  52.39 .  48 

14.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Mile  108.63  to  LaGrange  Dam .  49 

15.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Copperas  Creek  Dam  to  Mile  108.63 .  50 

16.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Peoria,  Lower  Bridge  to  Copperas  Creek  Dam. . .  51 

17.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — Henry  Dam  to  Peoria  Lower  Bridge .  51 

18.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — LaSalle  to  Henry  Dam .  51 

19.  Diagram — Acres  Submerged — LaSalle  to  Mouth . 51 

PART  IV. 

20.  View  of  New  Levee  Showing  Extreme  Irregularity  of  much  of  the  Dipper  Work . .  55 

21.  Map — Growth  of  Levee  District .  56 

21A.  View  within  the  Levees  Showing  a  Newly  Reclaimed  District .  56 

22.  Map — River  Bottoms  and  Levee  Districts .  59 

23.  Profile — Elevation  of  Levees .  59 

23A.  View  of  Typical  Pumping  Station .  60 

PART  V. 

24.  Diagram — Growth  and  Decline  of  Fish  Catch  on  Illinois  River .  67 

25.  Diagram — Annual  Yield  of  Fishes  on  Illinois  River  1894-1908 .  67 

25A.  View  of  Fish  Market  at  Havana .  68 

26.  Diagram — Relation  of  Fish  Yield  to  Water  Acreages .  78 


ILLUSTRATIONS— Concluded. 


FIGURE  PART  VT. 

NO.  PAGE. 

27.  Diagram — Profiles  of  1904  Flood .  87 

28.  Diagram — Relation  between  Drainage  Area  and  Flood  Flows .  93 

PART  VII. 

29.  Map — Extent  of  Timber  in  Bottom  Lands — Pearl  to  LaG  range .  107 

30.  Map— Extent  of  Timber  in  Bottom  Lands — Beardstown  to  Havana . 107 

31.  Map — Rainfall  Contours— March  17,  to  April  1,  1904 . 109 

32.  Map — Rainfall  Contours — March  20,  to  27,  1913 . 109 

33.  Diagram — Observed  and  Computed  Flood  Profiles . .....Ill 

34.  Diagram — Elevation  of  Levees  Compared  with  Observed  and  Computed  Flood 

Profiles . Ill 

PART  VIII. 

35.  Diagram — Effect  of  River  Valley  Storage  on  Flood  Rate  at  Kampsville  Dam.  .  115 

36. ’  Map — Levee  Districts  Built  and  Proposed . 

37.  Diagram — Storage  in  Levee  Districts . 117 

38.  Diagram — Relation  of  Flow  Storage  and  Gage  Height — At  and  Above  Peoria  . .  119 

39.  Diagram — Relation  of  Flow  Storage  and  Gage  Height  at  and  Above  LaGrange 

Dam . 121 

40.  Diagram — Suggestion  for  Compromise  Levees  near  Navigable  Lakes . 130 

41.  View  of  River  Banks  at  Recent  Moderate  Water  Stages  showing  the  Dead  and 

Decayed  Land  Vegetation . 133 


TABLES. 


TABLE  PART  III. 

NO .  PAGE . 

1.  List  of  Gages  on  Illinois  and  Des  Plaines  Rivers .  24 

2.  Flow  of  Illinois  River  at  Peoria — 1890  to  1900 .  30 

3.  Summarized  Flow  of  Illinois  River  at  Peoria— 1890-1899 .  32 

4.  Monthly  Discharge  of  Illinois  River  at  Peoria — 1903-1906 .  33 

5.  Flow  of  Des  Plaines  River  above  Riverside .  34 

6.  Comparison  of  Run-off,  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  River .  34 

7.  Summary  of  Rainfall  and  Run-off  Data  in  Illinois .  35 

8.  Flow  of  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  1900-1914 .  37 

9.  Data  on  Navigation  Dams .  40 

10.  Land  Overflowed  Before  and  After  Construction  of  Levee  Districts  as  Existing  or 

Under  Construction  in  1914 .  53 

PART  IV. 

11.  Principal  Data  of  Levee  Districts .  58 

PART  V. 

12.  Total  Fish  Catch — Illinois  River — 1894-1908 .  65 

13.  Statistics  of  Fisheries — Illinois  River  State  of  Illinois,  and  United  States  for  1908 . .  66 

14.  Total  Fish  Catch — Havana  Market .  66 

15.  Yearly  Averages  of  German  Prices  for  Carp — 1891-1905 . .  68 


TABLES— Concluded. 


TABLE 

NO.  PAGE. 

16.  Wholesale  Prices  for  Carp  in  Berlin  for  1909 .  68 

17.  Catch  Value  and  Price  Paid  to  Fishermen  in  Illinois .  69 

18.  Wholesale  and  Retail  Prices  for  Carp — 1908-1913 .  69 

19.  Comparative  Statistical  Data,  Illinois  Fisheries .  74 

20.  Acreage  in  Lakes  in  Virgin  Valley  and  Subsequent  to  Construction  of  Levee  Dis¬ 

tricts  .  79 

21.  Fish  Shipped  from  Illinois  River. .  80 

22.  Yield  of  Illinois  River  Fisheries  in  1908 .  81 

23.  Summarized  Data  on  Fish  Yields  in  Foreign  Countries .  82 

24.  Financial  Statement  of  a  German  Pond  Fishery .  83 

PART  VI. 

25.  Highest  Water  in  Each  Year  at  Salient  Places .  85 

26.  Greatest  Measured  Flows — Flood  of  1904 .  86 

27.  Estimated  Maximum  Flow — Flood  of  1904 .  88 

28.  Maximum  Flood  Flows  on  Streams  in  and  Adjacent  to  Illinois . ,92 

29.  Maximum  Flood  Rates  on  all  Streams  of  United  States  having  Record  of  10  Years 

or  More . 95 

30.  Relation  between  Probable  Future  Floods  and  Average  Yearly  Flood .  99 

31.  Comparison  of  Flood  Ratios  at  Peoria .  99 

32.  Flood  Expectation  in  Various  Periods . 100 

PART  VII. 

33.  Values  in  Flow  Formula  During  Bank-Full  Conditions . 103 

34.  Values  in  Flow  Formula  During  Flood  of  1904 . 105 

35.  Effect  of  Trees  and  Brush  on  Flood  Flow  Values . 106 

36.  Relative  Importance  of  Timber  on  a  Leveed  Reach . 107 

37.  Values  in  Flow  Formula  During  Flood  of  1913 . 108 

38.  “C”  and  “N”  Values  on  Various  Rivers . 110 

PART  VIII. 

39.  Storage  Required  to  Reduce  Flood  Rates  at  Peoria . . . 120 

40.  Costs  and  Benefits  of  Two  Plans  for  Flood  Protection . 125 

41.  List  of  Meandered  Lakes  Claimed  by  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  to  be 

Public  Waters . 131 

42.  Claims  against  Sanitary  District  on  Account  of  Damage  from  Overflow . 133 


PREFACE. 


On  March  14,  1914,  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  was  called 
into  a  conference  with  Governor  Edward  F.  Dunne,  the  Fish  and  Game 
Conservation  Commission,  representatives  of  the  State  Water  Survey, 
Biological  Department  of  the  State  University,  and  the  Agricultural 
Department  of  the  State  University,  to  discuss  the  importance  of  prob¬ 
lems  growing  out  of  the  varied  and  conflicting  interests  in  and  to  the 
Illinois  River  and  its  valley.  The  matters  under  consideration  at  this 
conference  were  the  preservation  of  the  public  waters  of  the  State,  the 
reclamation  of  submerged  lands,  the  preservation  of  fish,  and  future 
flood  control. 

As  a  result  of  this  conference  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission 
employed  Messrs.  Alvord  and  Burdick,  civil  engineers,  to  make  a  survey 
and  study  of  the  Illinois  River  and  Valley,  compile  the  facts  and  report 
to  this  commission.  This  report  has  been  put  in  printed  form  for  circu¬ 
lation.  We  believe  it  contains  such  necessary  information  as  will  enable 
the  Executive  and  Legislative  departments  of  the  State  to  adopt  a  policy 
that  will  prevent  conflict  between  public  interests  and  private  interests 
and  at  the  same  time  protect  both. 

The  Illinois  River  furnishes  from  10,000,000  to  24,000,000  pounds 
of  fish  per  annum,  or  10  per  cent  of  the  entire  fresh  water  fish  caught 
in  the  United  States.  After  the  opening  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal 
in  1900,  due  to  the  increased  area  of  overflowed  lands,  the  fish  crop 
increased  annually  until  the  year  1908.  Since  then  the  yield  has  been 
falling  off.  This  has  been  due  to  the  reclamation  of  large  areas  of  lakes 
and  overflowed  land  by  drainage  and  levee  districts.  The  effect  of  this 
reclamation  work  is  to  confine  the  flood  cross  sections  of  the  river  and 
materiallv  raise  the  flood  heights.  Messrs.  Alvord  and  Burdick  have 
presented  in  the  report  comprehensive  and  accurate  investigations  which 
show  the  effect  of  reclamation  upon  future  flood  heights  and  the  value 
of  conserving  the  lakes  in  the  river  valley  for  fish  breeding  and  flood 
storage  reservoirs. 

Attempts  are  made  by  private  parties  to  appropriate  meandered  or 
navigable  lakes  in  the  Illinois  Valley  which  are  the  public  property  of 
the  State.  Acting  on  the  policy  outlined  by  the  Legislative  Committee 
on  Submerged  and  Shore  Lands,  which  led  to  the  creation  of  the  Rivers 
and  Lakes  Commission,  this  commission  is  now  actively  engaged  in 
preventing  such  illegal  seizure  of  the  lakes  in  the  Illinois  Valley  and 
conserving  them  for  the  use  of  flood  storage,  fish  production,  and  the 
recreation  of  the  public. 

Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission, 

Arthur  W.  Charles,  Chairman. 
LeRoy  K.  Sherman,  Commissioner. 
Thomas  J.  Healy,  Commissioner. 

Charles  Christmann,  Secretary. 

905  State  Building,  Chicago,  Illinois. 


. 


' 


■  linj‘ 


/ 


PART  I. 


FINDINGS  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS. 

The  Honorable  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission ,  State  of  Illinois. 

Gentlemen  :  At  your  request  we  have  made  a  careful  study  of  the 
somewhat  complex  problems  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  relating  to  the  control 
of  floods  with  particular  reference  to  the  effect  of  the  extensive  reclama¬ 
tion  of  farm  land  within  the  past  ten  years  and  the  rise  and  recent  rapid 
decline  of  the  very  important  inland  fishery  upon  this  stream.  This 
report  concerns  principally  that  part  of  the  river  below  LaSalle  ;  above 
this  place  the  river  is  of  a  different  character  and  the  problems  con¬ 
sidered  do  not  exist. 

We  take  pleasure  in  reporting  to  you  the  result  of  our  study  and 
findings  as  follows : 

THE  OBJECT  OF  THE  REPORT. 

It  is  the  object  of  this  report  to  answer  the  following  general 
questions : 

1.  What  future  flood  rates  may  reasonably  be  expected  on  the  Illinois 
River  ? 

2.  Is  the  present  waterway  sufficient  to  accommodate  the  future 
floods  ? 

3.  What  interests  are  affected  by  the  past  and  probable  future 
improvements  in  the  valley?  How  is  each  interest  affected  and  what  is 
the  relative  importance  of  each? 

4.  What  plan  can  be  followed  to  correct  the  deficient  waterway  and 
to  produce  a  maximum  benefit  to  the  local  interests  and  to  the  public? 

SUMMARIZED  CONCLUSIONS  AND  FINDINGS. 

Hereinafter  will  be  found  much  of  the  data  upon  which  the  answers 
to  these  questions  must  be  based.  Before,  however,  nroceeding  to  discuss 
these  matters  at  length,  we  would  briefly  acquaint  you  with  our  principal 
findings  and  recommendations  as  follows : 

1.  Past  floods.  We  conclude  that  the  flood  of  1904,  which  at  most 
places  upon  the  river  is  the  greatest  flood  of  recent  years  reached  the  rate 
of  about  80,000  cubic  feet  per  second  at  Peoria  and  125,000  cubic  feet 
per  second  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  These  rates  are  equivalent  respec¬ 
tively  to  5.94  and  4.48  cubic  feet  per  second  per  square  mile  of  drainage 
area. 

At  nearly  all  places  upon  the  river  the  flood  of  1844  reached  a  greater 
height  than  any  flood  of  record  before  or  since.  This  flood  occurred 
during  the  maximum  flood  upon  the  Mississippi  and  the  water  passed 


12 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


through  a  river  valley  entirely  unimproved,  very  likely  a  veritable  jungle. 
Under  all  these  circumstances,  it  is  questionable  if  the  flow  rates  in  the 
1844  flood  very  much  exceeded  those  in  1904. 

2.  Future  floods.  The  stream  records  of  the  Illinois  River, 
although  a  few  records  cover  40  to  50  years,  are  not  sufficiently  extensive 
to  permit  the  formation  of  conclusions  as  to  probable  future  maximum 
flood  rates.  So  far  as  they  are  available  they-  would  appear  to  indicate 
that  in  the  course  of  centuries  the  flood  of  1904  might  reasonably  be 
expected  about  once  in  50  years. 

We  have  made  a  careful  study  of  the  great  floods  upon  other  rivers. 
It  appears  that  such  great  floods  are  due  to  peculiar  combinations  of 
circumstances,  such  as,  although  infrequent,  are  likely  to  happen  at  any 
time,  any  place  in  central  North  America.  The  great  floods  upon  the 
average  are  infrequent,  but  two  great  floods  may  occur  in  successive  years. 

It  is  our  conclusion  that  the  average  flood  expectancy,  about  once 
in  50  years,  is  a  flood  about  35  per  cent  greater  in  rate  than  the  flood 
of  1904. 

We  further  conclude  that  it  is  wise  to  protect  the  valley  lands 
against  the  flood  occurring  upon  the  average  of  once  in  50  years,  namely, 
a  flood  about  35  per  cent  greater  in  rate  than  the  flood  of  1904. 

3.  Present  waterway.  In  a  state  of  nature  the  river  in  flood 
occupied  its  entire  valley  from  hills  to  hills.  For  many  miles  in  the 
lower  river  this  flood  plain  averaged  3  miles  in  width  and  in  the  great 
floods  from  7  to  9  feet  in  depth. 

In  the  lower  one-third  of  the  river,  farm  land  levees  have  reduced 
the  width  of  the  flood  plain  by  about  80  per  cent  and  have  reduced  the 
cross  section  of  the  flowing  stream  in  a  great  flood  to  about  25  per  cent 
of  the  available  cross  section  of  the  1904  flood. 

Although  a  large  part  of  the  flood  flow  has  always  passed  by  way 
of  the  channel,  the  velocity  being  comparatively  slow  upon  the  land,  it 
is  our  conclusion  that  the  farm  land  levees  are  a  menace  to  themselves, 
in  that  they  have  so  restricted  the  flood  water  channel  and  are  lacking 
in  height,  generally  speaking,  to  such  an  extent  that  they  are  likely  to  be 
overtopped  in  a  great  flood.  As  the  protection  afforded  to  different 
districts  is  quite  variable,  it  is  evident  that  the  lowest  levees  will  suffer 
first  and  will  tend  to  protect  the  higher  levees.  If  all  the  districts  are 
to  be  protected,  however,  a  greater  available  flood  cross  section  must  be 
provided  which  may  be-  accomplished  in  several  ways,  or  the  flood  rates 
must  be  reduced  through  storage. 

4.  Interests  affected.  Although  many  interests  are  affected  to  a 
minor  degree,  we  find  that  the  predominant  interests  in  the  river  valley 
are  agriculture  and  fishing.  There  are  other  important  interests  at 
Peoria  and  at  a  few  of  the  other  cities  bordering  the  stream.  These 
cities,  however,  without  important  exceptions  are  well  above  the  ordinary 
floods  and  the  municipalities  in  general  are  not  greatly  concerned  with 
flood  abatement. 

5.  Flooded  lands.  We  estimate  the  total  water  acreage  below 
LaSalle  in  the  flood  of  1844  at  397,980  acres.  Of  this  acreage  320,150 
acres,  was  flooded  land.  The  first  total  includes  28,490  acres  of  river 
surface  and  49,340  acres  of  lakes  adjoining  the  river,  the  river  and  lakes 
surface  being  measured  at  the  low  water  plane  in  1901. 


FINDINGS  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS. 


13 


6.  Levee  districts.  Since  1904  the  construction  of  levees  for  the 
protection  of  the  bottom  lands  has  proceeded  at  a  rapid  rate.  At  the 
present  time  nearly  all  the  bottom  land  below  Beardstown  has  been 
reclaimed.  The  total  leveed  lands  are  estimated  at  171,725  acres.  These 
lands  have  been  protected  from  floods  at  an  estimated  cost  of  $5,350,000 
or  about  $30.00  per  acre.  The  estimated  full  value  of  these  lands  is 
about  $19,000,000,  an  average  of  about  $112  per  acre.  Much  of  this  land 
is  valued  at  from  $125  to  $150  per  acre. 

Projected  levee  districts,  so  far  as  we  can  learn,  aggregate  about 
49,250  acres. 

It  is  estimated  that  the  leveed  lands  produce  crops  to  the  value  of 
$3,000,000  per  annum  and  that  when  these  districts  are  fully  cultivated 
they  will  be  capable  of  producing  $5,000,000  per  annum.  These  figures 
are  based  upon  the  crops  of  recent  years  at  the  prices  that  generally 
prevailed  prior  to  1913.  At  recent  prices,  the  yield  would  be  much 
greater. 

It  is  estimated  that  with  the  projected  districts  completed  and  fully 
cultivated  together  with  a  small  acreage  upon  the  higher  ground,  now 
successfully  cropped  without  levees,  the  total  yield  from  agriculture  will 
be  approximately  $6,500,000  per  year. 

7.  Fisheries.  Statistics  indicate  that  the  fishery  of  the  Illinois 
River  is  more  valuable  than  any  other  fresh  water  river  fishery  in  the 
United  States.  It  is  exceeded  only  by  the  Great  Lakes  and  the  salmon 
industry  of  the  Pacific  Coast.  The  value  of  the  catch  to  the  fishermen 
amounts  to  62  per  cent  of  the  fish  product  of  the  State  and  10  per  cent 
of  the  production  of  the  United  States. 

The  principal  statistics  of  the  fishery  for  the  year  1908,  according 


to  U.  S.  Census,  were  as  follows : 

Total  value  of  catch . ' . . $860,000 

Value  excluding  mussel  products . $721,000 

Persons  employed  exclusive  of  shoremen .  2,497 

Capital  employed . $557,000 


8.  Game  fish  and  game.  The  statistics  of  fisheries  do  not  include 
the  fish  taken  for  private  use,  either  by  the  professional  fishermen  or 
sportsmen.  The  Illinois  River  and  its  adjacent  lakes  have  long  been 
known  as  the  rendezvous  for  the  sportsman  in  the  taking  of  game  fish 
and  the  shooting  of  water  fowl.  Competent  local  observers  estimate  that 
the  money  spent  in  the  local  river  communities  by  sportsmen  is  fully 
equal  to  that  derived  from  the  commercial  fishery.  While  the  benefit  to 
the  State  could  hardly  be  measured  by  this  expenditure,  it  indicates  a 
certain  value,  greater  or  less  in  amount,  that  must  be  attributed  to  the 
preservation  of  the  aquatic  life  of  the  stream.  This  use  of  the  stream 
will  doubtless  increase  as  the  value  becomes  better  known  through  the 
improved  water  transportation  facilities  now  shortly  to  be  secured. 

9.  Fish  prices.  The  statistics  above  quoted  are  based  upon  the 
average  price  of  about  3  cents  per  pound  to  the  fishermen.  About  two- 
thirds  of  the  catch  at  present  is  German  carp,  which  sells  for  2  to  2Yo 
cents  per  pound.  Other  varieties  sell  from  5  to  10  cents  per  pound. 

Carp  and  other  fish  return  from  12  to  15  cents  per  pound  to  the 
fishermen  of  Europe  or  four  or  five  times  the  American  price.  The  time 


14 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  R1VEIL 


will  doubtless  come  when  American  prices  will  be  more  nearly  equal  to 
those  of  Europe.  At  foreign  prices  the  1908  catch  of  the  Illinois  River 
would  have  amounted  to  from  $3,000,000  to  $3,500,000. 

10.  Rise  and  decline  of  fishery.  We  find  that  the  annual  catch 
upon  the  Illinois  River  has  gradually  increased  from  about  6,000,000 
pounds  in  1894  to  1.2,000,000  pounds  in  1900  and  24,000,000  in  1908. 

Xo  complete  statistics  are  available  since  1908,  but  it  is  well  known 
that  the  catch  has  very  rapidly  decreased  within  the  past  five  years.  The 
statistics  at  Havana  would  seem  to  indicate  that  the  yield  at  present  is 
only  about  one-third  of  the  banner  yield  of  1908. 

The  great  increase  is  probably  largely  accounted  for  by  the  rapid 
increase  of  the  German  carp,  which  first  began  to  appear  in  the  catch  of 
the  Illinois  River  at  about  the  date  of  the  earliest  statistics  above  men¬ 
tioned.  All  fish  life  was  undoubtedly  stimulated  by  the  increased  stages 
of  water  that  have  prevailed  since  1900. 

The  decline  since  1908  is  probably  due  to  a  number  of  causes 
including  the  lesser  flood  stages  prevailing  in  recent  years  and  the  large 
number  of  lakes  excluded  from  the  river  through  the  construction  of 
agricultural  levees  shutting  off  the  breeding  and  feeding  grounds  of  fish 
and  the  places  where  the  larger  part  of  the  seining  has  been  done.  About 
17,740  acres  in  lakes  have  been  enclosed  by  levees  amounting  to  about 
36  per  cent  of  the  original  lake  acreage.  Most  of  these  lakes  have  been 
enclosed  since  1908. 

11.  Increased  fish  yields.  We  have  examined  such  authentic 
statistics  of  foreign  fisheries  as  could  be  found,  particularly  the  statis¬ 
tics  of  the  German  fisheries. 

It  is  our  conclusion  that  at  the  present  prices  of  fish  and  labor,  a 
commercial  fishery,  that  is,  one  in  which  the  fish  are  bred,  fed  and  sold 
as  a  distinct  business,  could  not  be  profitable. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  there  is  prospect  of  a  good  profit  by 
intelligent  fish  culture  in  the  ponds  and  water  courses  remaining  within 
the  levee  districts,  providing  that  the  industry  is  carried  on  as  an  adjunct 
to  farming  in  much  the  same  way  that  poultry  is  ordinarily  raised  upon 
the  farm.  This  would  utilize  a  water  acreage  that  otherwise  could  pro¬ 
duce  no  revenue  and  could  serve  no  useful  purpose  except  to  store  the 
flood  waters  in  the  course  of  passage  to  the  drainage  ditches. 

12.  Permanency  of  the  fishery.  If  the  fishery  is  to  remain 
commercially  important,  means  must  be  provided  to  take  the  place  of 
the  breeding  grounds  formerly  furnished  by  the  shallow  waters  of  the 
lakes  and  sloughs  which  have  been  reclaimed. 

13.  Predominant  interest.  In  the  light  of  the  figures  before  us 
we  must  conclude  that  agriculture  is  the  predominant  interest  of  the 
valley,  that  it  now  furnishes  and  will  hereafter  furnish  a  much  greater 
addition  to  the  wealth  of  the  State  than  is  produced  or  can  probably  be 
hereafter  produced  by  the  fisheries.  In  so  far  as  possible,  however,  both 
interests  should  be  promoted  in  harmony. 

14.  Reservoirs  and  fish  culture.  In  Europe,  where  the  flood 
problems  and  the  fisheries  have  been  studied  for  a  longer  time  than  in 
America,  the  suggestion  has  been  made  to  promote  the  fisheries  and 
reduce  the  floods  upon  the  diked  rivers  by  admitting  water  to  certain  of 
the  leveed  districts  in  rotation  during  each  spring  season  and  allowing 


FINDINGS  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS. 


15 


the  water  to  return  to  the  stream  during  the  low  water  season.  All  this 
with  the  object  of  reducing  the  spring  freshets,  artificially  providing 
overflowed  land  for  the  breeding  and  rearing  of  young  fish  and  the 
periodical  enrichment  of  the  land  by  the  sediments  of  the  flood  waters. 

We  have  endeavored  to  demonstrate  the  practicability  of  such  'a 
scheme  upon  the  Illinois  River.  The  practicability  of  this  scheme  is 
hereinafter  discussed  in  connection  with  the  remedy  for  floods. 

15.  Future  floods  and  present  levees.  No  great  flood  has 
occurred  upon  the  river  since  the  occupation  of  the  valley  by  levees 
approaching  the  present  scale  of  development. 

The  nearest  approach  to  a  great  flood  was  the  freshet  of  1913. 
Although  this  flood  is  estimated  to  have  been  slightly  less  in  volume  than 
the  flood  of  1904,  its  elevation  in  the  vicinity  of  the  La  Grange  Dam, 
near  the  head  of  the  most  extensive  levee  system,  was  3  feet  greater  than 
the  flood  of  1904  and  substantially  the  same  as  the  exeremely  high 
water  of  1844.  The  levee  districts  completed  since  1913,  including  those 
now  in  process  of  construction,  will  still  further  restrict  the  flood  water 
passage. 

16.  Great  floods  in  leveed  valley.  It  is  estimated  that  if  the 
1904  flood  should  be  repeated  under  the  same  conditions  of  water  level 
in  the  Mississippi,  a  number  of  levee  districts  would  be  overtopped. 

If  this  flood  should  be  repeated  under  the  high  water  conditions  in 
the  Mississippi  that  prevailed  during  the  flood  of  1844,  a  large  number 
of  the  agricultural  levee  districts  would  be  flooded. 

It  has  been  previously  concluded  that  a  flood  35  per  cent  greater 
in  rate  than  the  flood  of  1904  may  reasonably  be  expected  to  occur.  If 
such  a  flood  should  enter  the  Mississippi  at  the  height  of  water  prevail¬ 
ing  in  1844,  more  than  half  of  the  levee  districts  would  be  flooded,  and 
under  the  conditions  of  levee  construction  likely  to  prevail  in  the  future 
nearly  all  the  levee  districts  would  be  flooded,  and  the  water  would  reach 
a  height  about  5  feet  above  the  high  water  mark  in  1844  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  La  Grange  Dam,  with  lesser  differences  up-stream  and  down¬ 
stream. 

In  reference  to  the  flooding  of  levee  districts  it  should  be  noted 
that  the  lowest  levees  will  be  flooded  first  and  to  a  certain  extent  will 
serve  as  safety  valves  to  protect  the  districts  having  higher  levees.  The 
flooding  of  a  large  number  of  districts  near  the  apex  of  the  flood  will 
probably  arrest  the  further  rise  of  the  water  unless  the  flood  is  greatly 
prolonged.  Therefore,  to  increase  the  elevation  of  the  lower  levees  serves 
to  decrease  the  safety  of  the  high  levees  until  all  have  been  increased  to 
such  height  that  a  great  flood  may  pass  away  between  the  levees. 

17.  Levees  and  flood  rates.  There  is  no  question  but  that  the 
exclusion  of  the  flood  waters  from  the  bottom  lands  through  the  construc¬ 
tion  of  levees  has  a  tendency  to  increase  the  flood  run-off  rates  of  a 
stream.  We  have  investigated  this  matter  quite  carefully  as  applied  to 
the  Illinois  River  particularly  in  the  measured  flood  of  1904,  assuming 
it  to  pass  through  the  present  levee  system.  It  is  estimated,  however, 
that  the  net  effect  of  all  the  levee  districts  so  far  constructed  would  prob¬ 
ably  increase  the. maximum  flow  rate  only  about  5  per  cent  and  when 
the  bottoms  are  fully  leveed  about  10  per  cent.  This  rather  unexpected 
result  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  in  an  excessive  flood,  such  as  the 


16 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


flood  of  1904,  the  valley  is  practically  filled  with  water  several  days  before 
the  apex  of  the  flood  and  the  maximum  flood  rate  occurs  at  a  time  when 
the  gage  height  is  nearly  stationary  for  several  days  both  before  and  after 
the  apex.  A  smaller  stream  or  a  more  flashy  stream  would  doubtless 
make  a  better  utilization  of  the  storage  in  its  valley. 

18.  Apex  storage.  A  much  greater  effect  can  be  produced  in  miti¬ 
gating  the  floods  if  certain  large  reservoirs  could  be  held  empty  and  the 
flood  waters  only  admitted  when  the  flood  is  approaching  maximum  rates 
and  the  water  passing  into  the  reservoirs  could  be  regulated  so  that  all 
surplus  water  above  a  pre-determined  rate  could  be  accommodated. 

We  have  investigated  this  proposition  and  find  that  in  the  lower 
river  at  Kampsville  for  instance,  the  flood  heights  are  most  largely  gov¬ 
erned  by  the  Mississippi  River.  In  this  vicinity  storage  on  the  Illinois 
River  could  accomplish  nothing  material.  The  present  levee  districts  are 
not  adapted  to  flooding,  but  if  we  should  assume  that  all  future  levee 
districts,  which  -would  be  substantially  equal  in  storage  volume  to  the 
districts  at  present  constructed,  should  be  so  built  and  so  operated  that 
they  could  be  flooded  without  great  damage  except  the  loss  of  crop  when 
flooded,  then  we  estimate  that  there  would  be  about  850,000  acre-feet  of 
storage  above  the  La  Grange  Dam,  which  if  used  to  the  best  advantage, 
would  reduce  the  flood  flow  rate  about  25  per  cent  at  Beardstown,  making 
a  difference  in  the  height  of  the  water  of  about  3.4  feet. 

A  similar  estimate  at  Peoria  indicates  that  through  storage  it 
would  be  theoretically  possible  to  reduce  a  great  flood  about  2^2  feet. 

It  is  our  conclusion  that  storage  as  above  outlined  would  be  effect¬ 
ive  in  reducing  the  flood  heights  in  amounts  varying  from  practically 
zero  at  the  Kampsville  Dam  to  about  feet  at  Beardstown  and  2% 
feet  at  Peoria. 

19.  Increased  floodway.  In  general  there  are  three  ways  to 
increase  the  available  prism  for  the  passage  of  flood  waters. 

The  width  of  the  flood  stream  may  be  increased  by  setting  the 
levees  back  a  greater  distance  from  the  river  bank.  We  find  that  this 
remedy  is  impracticable  on  account  of  cost  except  where  new  levees  are 
to  be  built.  We  recommend,  where  levees  are  built  upon  both  sides  of 
the  river  at  any  place  above  the  junction  of  the  Sangamon,  that  the 
distance  from  center  to  center  of  levees,  measured  across  the  river,  be 
not  less  than  1,200  feet  and  where  reasonably  possible  2,000  feet.  Below 
the  Sangamon  the  land  is  nearly  all  leveed. 

The  flood  water  prism  might  also  be  increased  by  lowering  the  bed 
of  the  river,  as  might  be  accomplished  in  the  construction  of  a  deep 
waterwav.  In  our  opinion,  dredging  operations  undertaken  especially 
for  this  purpose  would  be  too  costly  as  compared  to  other  remedies.  So 
far  as  we  can  determine,  none  of  the  projects  for  improved  navigation 
would  affect  the  flood  water  levels  any  sufficient  amount  to  be  of  material 
benefit. 

20.  Higher  levees.  It  is  our  opinion  that  the  available  cross  sec¬ 
tion  for  flood  waters  can  be  most  economically  enlarged  by  increasing 
the  height  of  the  levees.  It  seems  to  us  that  the  circumstances  warrant 
the  building  of  levees  to  a  height  about  3  feet  above  a  great  flood,  assum¬ 
ing  it  to  enter  the  Mississippi  River  at  about  the  height  of  the  flood  of 
1844.  The  excess  height  of  levees  is  recommended  to  provide  for  wave 


FINDINGS  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS. 


17 


wash  and  in  emergency  as  a  small  factory  of  safety  to  prevent  disaster 
in  case  of  a  greater  flood.  It  is  believed  that  in  the  protection  of  these 
farm  lands,  the  danger  from  loss  of  life  is  small  and,  therefore,  that  it 
is  not  wise  to  provide  against  a  flood  of  extremely  rare  occurrence  or  to 
provide  a  factor  of  safety  that  would  be  justified  in  the  protection  of  a 
city  where  great  loss  of  life  might  result  from  the  unexpected. 

To  comply  with  the  above  recommendation,  the  higher  levees  at 
present  would  be  increased  from  2  to  3  feet.  The  lowest  of  the  levees 
lie  about  6  feet  below  what  we  regard  as  a  desirable  elevation.  As  nearly 
as  we  can  estimate  from  rather  incomplete  data,  the  cost  of  bringing  all 
the  present  levees  up  to  the  desirable  plane  would  be  about  $2,532,000. 
The  total  expenditure,  including  this  item  and  also  the  total  cost  of  all 
future  levee  districts,  is  estimated  at  about  $8,154,300. 

21.  Levee  heights  with  storage.  If  all  future  levee  districts 
should  be  so  built  that  they  might  be  utilized  for  storage  of  the  apex 
flood  waters,  the  necessary  levee  heights  in  the  upper  three-quarters  of 
the  river  could  be  reduced  from  2  to  3  feet,  but  this  would  still  require 
that  nearly  all  the  levees  should  be  increased  in  height  at  a  total  esti¬ 
mated  cost  of  about  $1,592,000.  The  total  expenditure,  including  this 
item  and  also  the  total  cost  of  all  future  levee  districts,  is  estimated  at 
$5,389,000. 

22.  Revenues  compared.  We  have  carefully  considered  the  relative 
merits  of  the  above  suggested  means  for  relieving  the  flood  situation  and 
the  promoting  of  fisheries,  particularly  as  to  the  practicability  of  using 
storage  reservoirs  for  these  purposes. 

Giving  the  storage  proposition  the  benefit  of  all  the  doubts  includ¬ 
ing  the  practicability  of  manipulating  the  reservoirs  during  the  flood 
and  the  benefit  accrued  to  the  fisheries,  we  estimated  that  the  largest 
financial  return  to  the  community  will  be  effected  through  the  utilization 
of  the  bottom-lands  for  agriculture  and  increasing  the  height  of  levees 
such  an  amount  as  is  necessary  to  protect  the  lands. 

23.  Means  of  accomplishment.  It  would  seem  proper  that  the 
additional  levee  protection  should  be  affected  by  private  enterprise. 

It  is  believed  to  be  the  duty  of  the  State,  however,  to  advise  the 
land  owners  as  to  conditions  and  through  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commis¬ 
sion  to  regulate  future  constructions  or  alterations  in  present  levees,  so 
far  as  the  powers  of  the  commission  extend.  Advice  to  the  land  owners 
is  the  proper  function  of  the  State,  for  no  individual  land  owner  is  in  a 
position  to  determine  these  facts  for  himself. 

It  is  not  probable  that  all  the  districts  can  profitably  increase  their 
levees  to  the  recommended  height,  for  some  of  the  small  districts,  par¬ 
ticularly  those  not  equipped  with  farm  improvements  and  public  improve¬ 
ments,  would  be  injured  in  case  of  flood  only  to  the  extent  of  a  lost  crop 
and  repairs  to  the  levee  system.  Such  districts  might  better  suffer  the 
loss  from  the  occasional  flood  than  to  protect  against  the  indefinite  future. 
The  proper  course  in  this  matter  will  be  determined  by  the  value  of  the 
crops  and  improvements  and  the  frequency  of  the  floods.  The  decision 
of  a  particular  district  will  not  affect  the  community  outside  the  district 
except  where  there  might  be  danger  to  life. 


— 2  R  L 


IS 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


24.  Promotion  of  fisheries.  The  predominance  of  the  agricul¬ 
tural  interest  does  not  require  that  the  fisheries  of  the  Illinois  Eiver 
should  be  abandoned. 

It  is  believed,  notwithstanding  the  levee  districts  present  and 
future,  that  a  scientific  utilization  of  the  remaining  public  waters, 
including  the  river  and  twenty  or  more  meandered  lakes  together  with 
the  best  use  of  the  remaining  undiked  bottoms  and  the  spaces  between 
the  river  banks  and  levee  toes,  will  result  in  the  maintenance  of  a  valuable 
fishery. 

We  recommend  that  the  State  Laboratory  of  Natural  History  be 
empowered  to  investigate  and  determine  the  best  means  for  promoting 
the  fishery  interests  in  the  public  waters  and  the  adjacent  undiked  lands. 
We  should  hope  that  a  practicable  program  might  be  worked  out  that 
would  permit  of  great  help  to  the  fisheries  and  at  the  same  time  provide 
game  and  fish  preserves,  usable  by  the  public  under  proper  restriction. 

We  understand  that  the  damage  claims,  filed  against  the  Sanitary 
District  up  to  December  31,  1912,  for  flowage  damage  to  land  below 
Utica,  amounts  to  $4,539,9S0,  and  that  additional  claims  not  yet  filed 
will  raise  this  total  to  about  eight  million  dollars.  The  last  named  figure 
is  equivalent  to  about  fifty-four  dollars  per  acre  of  land  outside  of  the 
levees,  and  below  the  flood  plane  of  1844.  ' 

Although  these  claims  are  no  doubt  excessive,  it  would  seem,  as 
has  been  suggested,  that  if  a  working  arrangement  could  be  devised,  the 
State  might  profitably  combine  with  the  Sanitary  District  in  the  pur¬ 
chase  of  some  of  these  lands. 

In  view  of  the  large  expenditures  made  by  our  cities  for  park 
purposes  and  the  expenditures  of  the  national  government  in  the  preser¬ 
vation  of  the  national  parks,  it  would  seem  that  there  is  a  field  for 
profitable  investments  by  the  State,  which  wisely  administered  would 
accrue  to  the  great  benefit  of  the  commercial  fishery  and  to  the  people 
of  the  State. 

We  have  endeavored  above  to  briefly  outline  our  principal  conclusions 
and  findings.  In  the  body  of  the  report  which  follows  will  be  found  a 
full  discussion  of  these  matters  and  much  of  the  original  data  upon 
which  the  discussion  and  conclusions  are  based. 


PART  II. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  ILLINOIS,  RIVER— ITS  WATERSHED  AND 

HYDRO-GEOLOGY. 

In  many  respects  the  Illinois  River  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
streams  in  the  United  States.  Its  past  importance  as  an  avenue  of 
water  commerce,  the  possibilities  of  its  future  in  this  respect,  its  fresh 
water  fisheries,  its  use  as  the  main  sewer,  so  to  speak,  of  the  second  city 
in  the  country,  and  more  recently,  the  agricultural  development  on  its 
bottom  lands  through  the  construction  of  levees,  all  have  led  to  perhaps 
more  thorough  studies,  with  various  objects  in  view  than  has  been 
received  by  any  other  of  our  rivers. 

The  Illinois  River  is  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  Des  Plaines 
and  Kankakee  Rivers,  273  miles  by  river  from  its  mouth  at  Grafton.  It 
flows  nearly  west  62  miles  to  the  Great  Bend  near  Hennepin,  and  thence 
pursues  its  course  nearly  south,  211  miles,  to  its  junction  with  the  Mis¬ 
sissippi.  Its  watershed,  estimated  at  27,914  square  miles,  lies  principally 
within  the  State.  The  upper  waters  of  the  Des  Plaines  and  Fox  Rivers 
drain  1,080  square  miles  in  Wisconsin,  and  the  headwaters  of  the 
Kankakee  furnish  the  outlet  for  3,207  square  miles  in  Indiana. 

The  principal  tributaries  are  the  Kankakee,  5,146  square  miles,  the 
Des  Plaines,  1,392  square  miles,  the  Fox,  2,700  square  miles,  and  the 
Vermillion,  1,317  square  miles,  all  joining  the  upper  river  above  Henne¬ 
pin.  Below  the  Great  Bend  the  Illinois  receives  the  Mackinaw,  1,217 
square  miles,  Spoon  River,  1,817  square  miles,  the  Sangamon,  5,670 
square  miles,  and  Crooked  Creek,  1,385  square  miles.  The  remaining 
watersheds  are  small,  none  exceeding  1,000  square  miles.  About  two- 
thirds  of  the  tributary  watershed  lies  to  the  southeast.  In  the  lower  60 
miles  no  important  drainage  reaches  the  stream  from  the  west,  the 
dividing  line  between  the  Illinois  and  the  Mississippi  which  here  flow 
in  parallel  courses,  lies  not  more  than  ten  miles  westward. 

The  greater  part  of  the  drainage  area  is  a  typical  Mississippi  valley 
prairie  region.  The  slopes  are  flat  to  the  north  and  east,  but  become 
more  rolling  in  the  lower  half  of  the  watershed.  The  soil  is  a  rich  black 
loam  1  to  4  feet  in  thickness,  very  largely  underlaid  with  boulder  clay. 

The  upper  waters  of  the  Fox  River  serve  a  poorly  drained  lake 
region,  largely  in  Wisconsin,  and  more  than  half  of  the  Kankakee  water¬ 
shed  comprises  the  marsh  region  of  northern  Indiana,  at  this  time 
partially  but  not  completely  drained  and  reclaimed.  The  dividing  ridge 
of  the  basin  ranges  in  elevation  from  700  to  1,000  feet  above  the  sea, 
and  the  river  itself  ranges  from  499  feet  at  its  head  to  412  feet  at  its 
mouth. 

THE  RIVER  BOTTOMS. 

From  the  head  of  the  river,  to  La  Salle,  a  distance  of  50  miles,  the 
fall  of  the  stream  is  comparatively  rapid,  dropping  about  53  feet.  The 

19 


20 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


stream  is  flanked  on  either  side  by  blufls  or  sharply  rising  ground 
nowhere  more  than  two  miles  apart,  and  narrowing  to  about  one-quarter 
of  a  mile  near  Seneca.  The  bottom  lands  are  comparatively  high,  and 
in  general  rise  toward  the  base  of  the  bluffs.  High  water  is  of  com¬ 
paratively  short  duration,  and  it  does  not  prove  advisable  to  dike  the 
farm  land. 

Below  La  Salle  the  conditions  are  quite  different.  In  223  miles,  the 
fall  is  only  33  feet,  and  for  the  first  80  miles  only  6  feet.  As  in  the  upper 
river,  the  bottoms  are  flanked  by  bluffs  or  hills,  but  the  flood  plain  is 
wider,  ranging  from  iy2  to  3  miles  above  Peoria,  3  to  5  miles  near 
Havana,  and  6  to  7  miles  near  Beardstown,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Sanga¬ 
mon  Biver.  In  the  lower  60  miles,  the  bottom  lands  are  generally  3  to 
•I  miles  in  width.  From  La  Salle  to  the  Mississippi,  the  bottom  land 
subject  to  flood  aggregates  about  400,000  acres  or  620  square  miles.  The 
immediate  banks  of  the  stream  are  nearly  everywhere  higher  than  the 
bottoms  further  inland,  gradually  falling  away  to  lakes,  ponds,  and 
marshes  near  the  foot  of  the  bluffs.  Some  exceptions  to  this  rule  are 
found  at  the  deltas  of  the  larger  tributaries. 

In  the  upper  river  as  far  south  as  Beardstown,  the  river  banks  lie 
generally  from  7  to  12  feet  above  low  water,  averaging  about  10  feet.  The 
lakes,  many  of  them  quite  large,  are  connected  with  the  river  at  low  or 
medium  stages  of  water  and  lie  at  approximately  the  same  elevation  as  the 
river,  rising  and  falling  with  it.  The  low  water  connection  is  always 
at  the  foot  of  the  lake.  At  moderate  stages  of  flood  they  are  connected 
with  the  river  at  their  upper  ends  also,  the  lakes  receiving  and  carrying 
a  portion  of  the  flood  flow  in  its  passage  down  the  valley,  and  also 
acting  as  storage  reservoirs,  tending  to  reduce  the  maximum  flow  rate 
of  the  flood.  In  the  lower  river  below  Beardstown,  the  immediate  banks 
of  the  stream  are  higher,  the  filling  of  the  bottom  lands  has  progressed 
further,  and  the  lakes  are  smaller,  many  of  them  lying  10  feet  or  more 
above  low  water  in  the  main  stream.  They  are  thus  only  invaded  by 
river  stages  considerably  above  normal. 

The  course  of  the  river  is  unusually  direct,  the  filling  of  the  flood 
plain  having  been  insufficient  to  induce  the  tortuous  courses  of  the  Mis¬ 
sissippi  and  like  streams.  Throughout  the  greater  part  of  its  length, 
particularly  in  the  lower  60  miles,  the  stream  follows  the  base  of  the 
western  hills,  with  occasional  diversions  toward  the  center  of  the  valley 
where  the  stream  has  been  pushed  outward  by  the  deposit  at  the  mouth 
of  an  important  tributary. 

Throughout  its  course  the  low  water  banks  of  the  stream  are 
thickly  overgrown  with  trees  and  brush,  and  in  the  lower  reaches  of  the 
river  particularly,  the  bottoms  are  veritable  jungles  of  trees,  shrubs  and 
climbing  vines.  In  its  natural  state  all  ground  within  a  few  feet  of  the 
low  water  line  in  river  and  lakes  was  thus  thickly  overgrown,  the  only 
open  places  being  the  lakes  and  ponds  and  their  iow  lying  borders  sub¬ 
merged  for  a  large  part  of  the  year,  and  during  the  low  water  season 
covered  with  swamp  grass  and  rushes. 

GEOLOGY. 

The  geological  history  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  is  instructive.  It  serves 
to  show  the  reasons  governing  the  peculiarities  of  the  river  bottom  topo- 


1. 


!0  0  !0 
SCALE 


iV  ft/fifes  / 


6  Acoomparry  Report  Of 
AlvoRD&'  Burdick 
Engineers  Chicago 


Note- 

Drainocje  orea--,  oP rrxwi  shrcrn  af  vcriowo 
ptaoea  urii  /urinnpal  tributaries  at  their  rnoufha 
ohown  m  figures  which  indict  :x[u(ire  milos 


% 

■t>s& 


riGUHB 


The  Watershed  Of  The 

Illinois  River 

Showing 

Drainage  Areas  Of 
Main  Stream  8<  Principal-Tributaries 


GENERAL  DESCRIPTION. 


9.1 

rv  -L 


graphy,  indicates  tendencies  still  operative  but  somewhat  modified,  and 
materially  assists  in  final  conclusions  as  to  what  future  floods  may  be 
expected,  through  comparison  with  other  streams  upon  which  longer  flow 
records  are  available.  It  serves  to  indicate  why  some  excessive  flood 
rates  are  not  applicable  to  the  Illinois. 

The  territory  drained  by  the  Illinois  is  almost  entirely  within  the 
area  of  glaciation.  From  the  headwaters  to  Peoria,  the  glacial  debris 
belongs  to  the  Wisconsin  period.  From  Peoria  to  the  southern  line 
of  Pike  County,  the  drift  is  Illinoisan  capped  by  loess,  a  fine-grained 
clay-like  formation.  From  this  place  southward  the  drainage  area  is 
quite  small,  especially  to  the  west  of  the  river  where  the  area  is  ungla¬ 
ciated,  but  the  surface  is  largely  covered  by  loess.  To  the  east  there  is 
a  moderate  amount  of  drift  also  capped  by  loess.  This  visit  of  the 
glaciers  has  had  a  very  marked  effect  upon  the  character  of  the  present 
streams  draining  the  region  of  their  occupation,  and  the  watershed  of 
the  Illinois  River  is  principally  characteristic  of  the  glacial  epoch.  The 
depth  of  the  glacial  debris  overlying  rock  except  in  exceptional  instances, 
varies  from  20  feet  to  several  hundred  feet,  the  latter  depth  of  covering 
predominating. 

It  is  well  known  that  when  materials  are  eroded  by  flowing  water, 
the  heavier  particles  are  dropped  first  and  the  lighter  materials  are 
carried  longer  distances.  Thus,  in  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  River, 
the  upper  portion  of  its  ancient  channel  is  paved  with  coarse  sand  and 
gravel.  Further  southward  in  Illinois,  Iowa  and  Missouri,  the  deposits 
are  finer,  coarse  gravel  being  scarce.  Sand  where  found  is  usually 
coarse  to  the  northward,  and  becomes  finer  to  the  southward.  In  the 
lower  river,  the  later  deposits  are  of  finely  divided  clay,  and  at  New 
Orleans  for  nearly  all  the  year,  the  water  is  charged  with  clay  particles 
so  fine  that  many  weeks  of  settling  are  required  to  deposit  them.  The 
water  has  rid  itself  of  sands  and  gravels  except  in  the  greatest  floods. 

Similar  facts  are  observable  in  the  territory  occupied  by  the  glaciers. 
The  rocks  over  which  they  moved  were  worn,  scraped  and  broken, 
resulting  in  debris  varying  from  the  largest  boulders  to  finely  divided 
dust.  The  melting  waters  took  up  these  materials,  transported  them 
under  and  through  the  ice,  and  upon  emerging,  first  deposited  the 
boulders,  then  the  gravel,  then  the  coarse  sand,  then  the  fine  sand,  and 
lastly  the  more  finely  divided  clay.  Likewise  where  the  glaciers  rested 
for  long  periods,  in  their  recession  the  melting  waters  deposited  all 
kinds  of  debris  which  were  washed  over  by  the  melting  of  the  ice  further 
north,  and  the  materials  were  sorted  in  the  order  above  described,  the 
coarser  materials  in  the  north  and  the  finer  materials  in  the  south. 

This  sorting  of  the  glacial  debris  is  the  principal  cause  of  marked 
differences  in  the  flow  characteristics  of  the  streams  in  the  northern 
United  States.  In  the  north  in  Wisconsin  and  Michigan,  and  parts  of 
New  York  and  New  England,  the  sands  and  gravels  predominate.  A 
large  part  of  the  rainfall  is  absorbed  by  the  soil  where  it  is  stored  and 
given  up  again  to  the  streams  with  relative  uniformity  throughout  the 
year.  Streams  are  thus  produced  that  yield  annually  50  per  cent  of 
the  rainfall,  or  15  to  20  inches  per  year,  and  further,  by  reason  of  the 
ground  storage,  the  flow  is  constant  and  of  relatively  large  volume  in 
the  driest  seasons. 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


99 


/V  /V 


Further  south  in  Illinois,  Iowa  and  in  northern  Indiana,  the  sand 
and  gravel  is  largely  confined  to  narrow  belts  in  the  valleys  of  the  water 
courses,  and  nearly  all  the  streams  drain  regions  "where  clay  largely 
predominates,  and  although  clay  will  absorb  a  large  amount  of  water,  it 
does  so  only  slowly  and  gives  it  up  with  such  reluctance  that  even  the 
larger  streams  cease  to  flow  in  the  dry  seasons.  The  surface,  although 
for  the  most  part  well  drained,  is  relatively  flat.  The  water  remains  for 
a  long  time  upon  the  surface;  the  absorption  is  high  and  as  it  cannot  be 
drained  to  the  streams,  is  largely  absorbed  by  luxuriant  vegetation.  The 
flood  rate  is  mitigated  by  the  storage  in  the  wide,  flat  bottom  lands,  over 
which  although  the  water  is  in  transit  and  ultimately  drains  awTay,  it 
moves  but  slowly.  All  this  results  in  streams  that  naturally  deliver  not 
more  than  25  or  30  per  cent  of  the  rainfall,  or  7  to  15  inches  per  year. 

The  Illinois  and  its  tributaries  are  of  this  character.  The  flat 
prairie  lands  are  thoroughly  saturated  in  the  spring  and  give  up  the 
water  stored  only  to  the  roots  of  vegetation.  The  immediate  run-off  in 
great  storms  is  high,  but  is  slow  in  its  passage  through  the  principal 
arteries  of  drainage.  Thus,  we  have  streams  of  small  annual  run-offs, 
extremely  small  summer  flows,  and  flood  flows  intermediate  between 
those  of  the  sand  and  gravel  watersheds  of  Wisconsin  and  Michigan,  and 
the  unglaciated  or  slightly  glaciated  regions  of  Kentucky,  southern 
Indiana,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania  and  generally  in  the  southeastern  states. 

These  characteristics  of  regional  streams  should  be  kept  in  mind  in 
examining  the  data  hereinafter  presented  upon  the  flood  flows  of  the 
eastern  United  States  as  bearing  upon  the  probabilities  in  the  Illinois 
River.  They  serve  to  explain  the  improbability  upon  the  one  hand  of 
the  extremely  high  run-off  rates  of  the  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania  streams, 
and  upon  the  other  hand,  the  extremely  small  flood  run-offs  from  some 
of  the  watersheds  in  northern  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.  Upon  the 
Illinois  River  proper,  and  indeed  upon  some  of  its  tributaries,  storage  is 
a  predominating  influence  and  serves  to  reduce  the  flood  flow  rates  very 
near  to  that  of  the  rivers  draining  the  coarse  glacial  drifts. 

For  an  explanation  of  the  topography  of  the  present  river  valley, 
we  are  also  indebted  to  the  research  of  the  geologists.  The  sharp  dis¬ 
tinctions  between  the  physical  features  above  and  below  the  Great  Bend 
near  Hennepin  are  explained  by  the  very  different  geological  history  of 
these  two  reaches  of  the  stream.  The  lower  Illinois  from  the  Bend 
southward  occupies  its  pre-glacial  channel  which  formed  a  drainage 
outlet  for  a  very  much  larger  area  than  now  drains  through  this  portion 
of  the  river.  There  is  circumstantial  evidence  that  the  Pock  Piver,  now 
a  tributary  of  the  Mississippi  at  one  time  entered  the  Illinois  near  the 
Great  Bend,  and  was  subsequently  diverted  by  glacial  action.  This 
enlarged  drainage  area  and  the  great  volumes  of  water  that  poured  from 
the  glaciers  serve  to  account  for  the  wide  and  deep  river  valley  that  was 
excavated.  In  places,  the  prehistoric  stream  reached  a  width  not  less 
than  15  miles. 

The  present  valley  from  the  Great  Bend  east  is  of  more  recent 
origin  and  owes  its  existence  to  its  temporary  occupancy  by  the  drainage 
from  the  glacial  Lake  Chicago.  As  stated  by  Leverett : 

“This  portion  of  the  Illinois  Valley,  although  of  post-Wisconsin  age,  has 
a  channel  more  than  a  mile  in  average  width  and  nearly  100  feet  in  average 
depth.  Yet  at  present  it  is  the  line  of  discharge  for  an  area  of  only  12,000 


GENERAL  DESCRIPTION. 


23 


square  miles.  The  influence  of  the  waters  discharged  from  the  Lake  Chicago 
and  also  from  the  lobes  north  and  east  of  the  Kankakee  is  plainly  shown  in 
the  great  size  of  this  valley.” 

In  the  escape  of  these  waters  it  was  necessary  to  cut  through  a 
glacial  moraine  near  Marseilles,  which  for  a  considerable  time,  no  doubt, 
impounded  a  large  lake  in  that  part  of  the  river  adjacent  to  Morris. 
Below  the  Marseilles  moraine,  the  channel  was  cut  to  a  depth  of  50  to 
75  feet,  and  is  still  cutting,  the  river  running  upon  a  rock  bottom. 

The  great  quantities  of  debris  brought  down  by  the  glacial  floods 
were  deposited  in  the  wide  and  deep  valley  of  the  lower  Illinois;  also 
no  doubt  the  scour  from  the  cutting  in  the  upper  Illinois.  The  recession 
of  the  glaciers  and  the  resulting  diminished  floods,  particularly  the 
new  outlet  formed  for  the  Great  Lakes  waters  at  Niagara,  a  compara-* 
tively  recent  geological  event,  so  greatly  diminished  the  water  supply 
that  the  filling  of  the  lower  Illinois  valley  was  not  so  far  advanced  as 
other  streams  of  the  Middle  West,  and  it  remains  today  only  partially 
filled,  with  the  thread  of  the  stream  running  substantially  straight  in 
its  pre-glacial  channel,  flanked  by  numerous  lakes  and  lagoons  which 
doubtless  would  have  been  largely  obliterated  but  for  the  important 
changes  in  water  supply  heretofore  mentioned. 

The  building  up  of  the  bottoms  has  continued  in  recent  times  and 
is  going  on  today,  but  the  rate  of  filling  is  much  diminished  by  the 
decreased  water  supply,  and  consists  of  the  finer  silt  only,  which  when 
the  flood  invades  the  bottom  lands,  is  quickly  dropped  in  the  relatively 
still  waters  and  thus  accounts  for  the  height  of  the  banks  immediately 
adjoining  the  stream  and  the  general  slope  of  the  land  away  from  the 
river  bank  toward  the  inland  lakes.  The  filling  of  the  lakes  is  now  very 
slow  as  much  of  the  water  borne  material  is  dropped  immediately  outside 
the  thread  of  the  channel. 

In  the  upper  river,  although  deposits  of  considerable  magnitude  took 
place  in  the  Morris  Basin,  the  more  recent  period  has  been  one  of  cutting 
only.  The  deposits  brought  down  by  the  tributaries  were  largely  cut 
away  in  the  drainage  of  the  Morris  Basin,  and  on  account  of  the  more 
rapid  fall  in  this  part  of  the  river,  the  cutting  continues  to  a  relatively 
small  extent.  In  the  lower  river  the  cutting  is  absent  and  the  bottoms 
are  building,  although  slowly  by  reason  of  the  diminished  water  supply.. 


PART  III. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS— DAMS— SUBMERGED 

LANDS. 

As  would  be  expected  from  the  topography  and  geology  of  the 
drainage  basin,  the  Illinois  River  is  a  stream  of  extremely  small  natural 
flow  in  drouth,  and  on  account  of  its  wide  bottom  lands  and  the  great 
opportunity  for  flood  water  storage,  the  maximum  flood  discharge  is 
relatively  small,  and  the  duration  of  flood  conditions  is  relatively  long. 

PREVAILING  GAGE  HEIGHTS. 

Gage  records  of  water  stage  are  recorded  at  numerous  places 
throughout  the  length  of  the  river,  particularly  the  records  of  head¬ 
water  and  tail  water  at  the  two  U.  S.  dams  at  Kampsville  and  La  Grange, 
the  two  State  dams  at  Copperas  Creek  and  Henry,  the  observations  of 
the  Weather  Bureau  at  Beardstown  and  Peoria,  and  several  other  gages 
maintained  by  municipalities  and  the  railroads  which  cross  the  stream. 
Table  No.  1  shows  the  locations  of  all  gages  so  far  as  known,  with  a 
statement  of  the  length  of  time  covered  by  each  record.  The  data  is 
very  complete  for  the  past  twenty  years.  A  number  of  the  gage  records 
are  fairly  complete  back  to  1880.  The  Peoria  gage  record  is  continuous, 
excepting  a  few  years,  back  to  1869. 

TABLE  NO.  1— LIST  OF  GAGES  ON  ILLINOIS  AND  DESPLAINES  RIVERS. 


Compiled  from  report  of  United  States  Engineers  on  14-foot  waterway. 


Number. 

Miles  above 
Grafton. 

General  location. 

Elevation  above 
Memphis 
datum. 

Reads 
up  or 
down. 

Years  covered 
by  records. 

By  whom 
established. 

Custodian  of 
records. 

1 

0.  0 

Grafton  Dock . 

219.60 

Up... 

’79-’92 

U.  S.  Eng’rs _ 

•  -  do •••••••■>•■ 

1 

0.0 

Grafton  Dock . 

410.96 

.  .do — 

;94-’14 

U.  S.  Weather  Bu- 

2 

7.0 

Deer  Plain . 

413.37 

do. _ 

’78-’80 

do . 

reau,  St.  Louis — 
U.  S.  Engineers, 
Peoria. 

3 

21.  0 

Hardin . 

414.61 

B  oth _ 

’78-’80 

. .  do . 

4 

31.5 

Columbiana . 

416.47 

Both.. . 

’78-’80 

U.  S.  Eng’ers. . 

4 

31.5 

31.5 

Kampsville . 

416.  82 

Up . 

’81-’93 

do . 

4 

Kampsville  Lock— lower . 

409. 10 

..do — 

’94-T4 

. .  do  ••••••••*•. 

United  States  Engi- 

4 

31.5 

Kampsville  Lock— upper . 

409.  13 

. .  do _ 

’93-’14 

•  -  do  •“••••••••» 

neers,  Peoria. 
United  States  Engi- 

5 

43.1 

Pearl— C.  &  A.  Bridge . 

419. 70 

. .  do — 

’78-’14 

•  m  dO  ••••••••••• 

neers,  Peoria. 

U.  S.  Eng’rs  and  C. 

6 

61.7 

Valley  City— Wabash  Br . 

421.75 

. .  do — 

’78-’80 
’83-' 14 

..do . 

&  A.  R.  R.  in  1904 
— U.  S.  E.,  C.  & 
A.  R.  R.  and  San¬ 
itary  Dist.,  1914. . 

Wabash  R.  R.,  De¬ 
catur — U.  S.  En¬ 
gineers,  Peoria. 

24 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS — SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


o  - 

.v  O 


TABLE  NO.  1— Continued. 


Number. 

Miles  above 
Grafton . 

General  location. 

Elevation  above 

Memphis 

datum. 

Reads 
up  or 
down. 

Years  covered 

by  records. 

By  whom 
established. 

Custodian  of 
records. 

7 

71.3 

Meredosia — Wabash  Br . 

424.  22 

Up 

’78— ’81 

w  r . 

’84-’14 

U.  S.  Eng’ers-  - 

Wabash  R.  R.,  De- 

catur— U.  S.  En- 

gineers,  Peoria. 

8 

77.6 

LaGrange  Lock  site . 

425.  23 

Both. 

’82-’89 

. .  do . 

8 

77.  6 

LaGrange  Lock — lower . 

418.  23 

Up . 

’90-T4 

. .  do . 

United  States  Engi- 

neers,  Peoria. 

8 

77.6 

LaGrange  Lock — upper . 

418.  23 

. .  do — 

’90-T4 

. .  do* .......... 

United  States  Engi- 

neers,  Peoria. 

9 

88.9 

Beardstown— C.  B.  &  Q.  Br _ 

427.  25 

. .  do — 

’78-’84 

’85-’ 14 

.  .do . 

U.  S.  W.  B.,  1904— 

U.  S.  W.  B..U.S. 

Eng’rs  and  San. 

. 

Dist.  in  1914. 

10 

97.5 

Browning . 

436.  82 

. .  do — 

1903 

. .  do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

11 

103.0 

Sharp’s  Landing . 

429. 49 

do. . . . 

’78-’80 

. .  do . 

12 

108.5 

Holme’s  Landing . 

439. 37 

. .  do — 

1903 

. .  do . 

13 

111.5 

Bath . 

430.  22 

do. . . . 

’78-’79 

. .  do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

14 

120.0 

Havana  Highway  Bridge . 

431.67 

. .  do — 

’78— ’81 

’95-’04 

’07-'14 

.  .do . 

U.  S.  Eng’rs,  in  1904 

— U.  S.  Eng'rs 

and  San.  Dist.  in 

1914. 

15 

128.0 

Liverpool . 

438.  60 

. .  do — 

1903 

. .  do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

16 

137.0 

Copperas  Creek . 

432.  73 

. .  do — 

’73-’76 

Ill.  Canal  Com. 

16 

137.0 

Copperas  Lock — lower . 

427. 75 

. .  do — 

’77-’ 14 

..do . 

United  States  Engi- 

neers,  Peoria. 

17 

137.0 

Copperas  Lock — upper . 

432.  73 

.  .do — 

’77— ’ 14 

. .  do . 

United  States  Engi- 

neers,  Peoria. 

18 

146.5 

Kingston  Mines — landing . 

434.  44 

. .  do — 

’03-’04 

U.  S.  Eng’rs... 

U.  S.  Eng’rs,  Peoria 

1904— San.  Dist., 

Chicago,  1914. 

19 

153.5 

Pekin  Highway  Bridge . 

438.  57 

. .  do — 

’92,  ’98-’04 

’12— ’14 

City  of  Pekin . . 

U.  S.  Eng’rs,  in  1904 

— U.  S.  EngTs 

and  San.  Dist. 

in  1914. 

20 

162.0 

Peoria  &  Pekin  Union  R.  R.  Br. 

435.  53 

. .  do _ 

’03-’04 

U.  S.  Geo.  Sur. 

U.  S.  Geo.  Survey. 

21 

163.0 

Peoria  Lower  Free  Bridge . 

435. 82 

. .  do — 

’67-’14 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . . 

U.  S.  W.  B.,  St.  L. 

and  Peoria. 

163.0 

Peoria  Lower  Free  Bridge . 

588. 36 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist 

164.5 

Peoria — U.  S.  Boatyard.  . . 

435.  82 

Up... 

’10-’14 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . . 

United  States  Engi- 

neers,  Peoria. 

22 

166.0 

Peoria— upper  bridge . 

413. 10 

. .  do _ 

’94-T4 

Peoria  W.  W  . . 

Peoria  Water  Wks., 

Peoria. 

172.3 

Mossville  (|  mile  above) . 

588.40 

Dnwn. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

180.0 

Chillicothe,  San.  Dist . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

181.3 

Chillicothe  (if  mile  above) . 

588.  52 

Down. . 

.  .do . 

23 

182.0 

Santa  Fe  R.  R.  Bridge. . .' . 

436.  41 

Up... 

’03-’04 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. .. 

U.  S.  Enp’rs  in  1904 

— San.  Dist.  in 

187.3 

Sparland  (If  miles  below) . 

588. 13 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist 

1914. 

24 

189.0 

Lacon  Highway  Bridge. . . 

442.  04 

Up... 

’03-’04 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. .. 

United  States  Encd- 

neers,  Peoria. 

189.0 

Lacon  Highway  Bridge . 

588.  18 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. . 

191.0 

Lacon  (2  miles  above) . 

588.  20 

.  .do. _ 

.  d  n . 

194.5 

Henry  (2  miles  below) . 

588. 13 

do. ... 

.  d  n . 

195.5 

Henry  Br.  (b  mile  below) . 

587.  89 

Down.. 

Sanitary  Dist. . 

196.0 

Henry  (city) . 

587.  89 

dn 

dn 

San.  Dist.  Uhieao'n 

25 

196.5 

Henry  Lock— lower . 

436.  64 

Both... 

'  ’69— ’14 

Ill.  Canal  Com. 

Illinois  Canal  Com., 

Lockport — U.  S. 

Eng’rs,  Peoria. 

26 

196. 5 

Henry  Lock — upper . 

443.  79 

Up . 

’71— ’14 

do . 

Illinois  Canal  Com.. 

Lockport— U.  S. 

Eng’rs,  Peoria. 

198.5 

Henry  (2*  miles  above) . 

587.  82 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist 

201.0 

In  Lake  Senachwine . 

587.  73 

.do. _ 

do . 

202.0 

In  Lake  Senachwine . 

587.  87 

. .  do. . . . 

.do . 

207.5 

Hennepin . 

587.  56 

do. . . . 

dn.  . 

San.  Dist.  Utiieap'n 

27 

210.5 

Bureau— Lock  No.  1 . 

446. 43 

Up.. 

’03-’04 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . . 

TTnif.pd  Stat.Ac  T^nod- 

neers,  Peoria. 

210.5 

Bureau  Junction . 

587.  60 

Dnwn. 

Sanitary  Dist 

212.0 

Depue  (If  miles  below) . 

587.  56 

ft-* 

« 

& 

s 

a 

£ 

28 

28 

29 

30 

30 

30 

30 

31 

31 

32 

32 

33 

34 

35 

36 

37 

38 

39 

40 

41 

42 

43 

44 

45 

46 

47 

48 

49 

50 

51 

52 

53 

54 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


TABLE  NO.  1 — Continued. 


General  location. 


Marquette  (1  mile  below) 

Spring  Valley . 

Spring  Valley . 

Peru  (1J  miles  below). . . 

Peru  Wagon  Bridge . 

Peru  Wagon  Bridge . 

Peru  Wagon  Bridge . 

La  Salle  Lock  15 . 


La  Salle  Highway  Bridge . 

La  Salle  acquediict . 

La  Salle  (2  miles  above) . 

Utica  Highway  Bridge . 

Utica  Highway  Bridge . 

Ottawa  (below  Buf.  Rock) . 

Buffalo  Rock . 

Ottawa  (3£  miles  below) . 

Ottawa  (2”miles  below) . 

Ottawa— C.,  B.  &  Q.  Bridge _ 

La  Salle  County  Poor  Farm. . . . 

Ottawa — C.  B.  &  Q.  Bridge _ 

Ottawa— C.  B.  &  Q.  Bridge _ 

Ottawa— between  bridges . 

Ottawa  Wagon  Bridge . 

Ottawa — above  Fox  River . 

Ottawa — Fleming  Farm . 

Marseilles— Douglas  Farm . 

Marseilles  (1J  miles  above  dam) 

Marseilles— above  Kickapoo  Cr. 

Marseilles  (city) . 

Marseilles  (2  miles  above) . 

Seneca  Bridge . 

Seneca  Bridge  (200'  above) . 

Seneca  (2  miles  below) . 

Seneca  (11  miles  above) . 

Seneca  (4  miles  above), . 

Morris  (2£  miles  below) . 

Morris  (1  mile  below) . 

Morris  Bridge . 

Morris  Bridge . 


Morris  (2J  miles  above) . 

Morris  (31  miles  above) . 

Divine — E.  J.  &  E.  Bridge _ 

Divine — E.  J.  &.  E.  Bridge . 

Divine — E.  J.  &  E.  Bridge . 

Kankakee  R.  (J  mi.  above) _ 

Kankakee  R.  (800'  above) . 

Kankakee  feeder . 

Kankakee  cut-off . 

Kankakee  cut-off  (1  mi.  above). 

Dupage  R.  (f  mile  below) . 

Dupage  R.  (mouth) . 

Smith’s  Bridge . 

Smith’s  Bridge  (£  mi.  above)... 

Smith’s  Bridge  (1  mile  above).. 

Jackson  Cr.  (2, 000'  above) . 

Millsdale  Highway  Bridge . 

Millsdale  Highway  Bridge . 

Foot  of  Treat’s  Island . 

Head  of  Treat’s  Island . 

Head  of  Treat’s  Island . 

Millsdale  (2  miles  above) . 

Patterson’s  Station . 

Brandon  (below  bridge) . 

Brandon  Bridge . 

So.  Joliet — Davidson  Stone  Q.. 


Elevation  above 

Memphis 

datum. 

Reads 
up  or 
down. 

Years  covered 

by  record. 

By  whom 
established. 

587.  48 

D  own. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

587.39 

. .  do — 

.  .do . 

587.31 

. .  do _ 

.  .do . 

587. 30 

. .  do _ 

.  .do . 

442.98 

Up . 

iS89 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

443.  45 

Up . 

.  .do . 

587.  02 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

435. 36 

Up . 

’67-’77 
’93— ’14 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.  08 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

. .  do . 

587. 14 

. .  do — 

587. 12 

. .  do. ... 

.  .do . 

444.  06 

Up . 

1900 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.  14 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

587.  14 

.  -  do.... 

.  -  do . 

451.  00 

Up . 

1883 

U.  S.  Eng’rs  . 

587.  02 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

. .  d  0 •••••*•••• 

587.  06 

. .  do — 

. 

587. 12 

. .  do _ 

. .  do . 

453.90 

Both. . . 

1900 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.  05 

Down. . 

’03-’04 

Sanitary  Dist. 

594. 35 

. .  do — 

„  . 

. . do. . . 

453.  92 

Both. . . 

1883 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

454.  74 

. .  do. ... 

1900 

. .  do  >•*•••*••• 

457.  72 

. .  do — 

1889 

..do . 

462.48 

. .  do. ... 

1900 

. .  do •«.«•••.•• 

464.  78 

. .  do. ... 

1883 

. .  do 

484.31 

. .  do. ... 

’83-’89 

’98-’00 

..do . 

487.  22 

. .  do. ... 

1900 

. .  do . 

587.  00 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 
Sanitary  Dist. 

587.  26 

.  .do — 

..  .. 

484.  50 

Both. . . 

1900 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.  28 

Down. . 

1903 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587. 34 

.  .do.... 

Sanitary  Dist. 

58 1.  24 

• .  do  -  ••• 

..do . 

587.  24 

.  .do — 

.  .do . 

587. 08 

. .  do — 

. .  do 

587. 10 

do. . . . 

do . 

587.  22 

. .  do _ 

.  .do . 

485. 95 

Both. . . 

’87,  ’93-’00 
’03-’04 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.  25 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

. .  do . 

587.  04 

.  .do — 

488.  48 

Up . 

i900 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587.20 

Down. . 

’03-’04 

Sanitary  Dist. 

587.  25 

. .  do — 

.  .do . 

494.41 

Both. . . 

1883 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587. 36 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 
. .  do . 

. .  do — 

1904 

587. 16 

. .  do — 

1903 

..do . 

587.  07 

. .  do — 

.  .do . 

587.  25 

. .  do — 

1904 

..do . 

586.  95 

. .  do _ 

do . 

587. 17 

Down.. 

Sanitary  Dist. 

499.  06 

Both... 

’66,  ’bs-’oi 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. . 

587. 13 

Down. . 

’02-’04 

Sanitary  Dist. 

587. 10 

. .  do — 

.  .do . 

587.  06 

. .  do — 

. .  do . 

587.  06 

. .  do — 

.  .do . 

500.41 

Both. . . 

1883 

U.  S.  Eng’rs.. 

509.  55 

. .  do — 

1883 

_ .  do ••*•••••■« 

588.  28 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist. 

587.  09 

. .  do.... 

. .  do — 

do . 

586.  72 

.  .do . 

584.  55 

. .  do — 

>  •  •  •  .  • 

.  .do . 

587.  06 

do. . . . 

. .  do . 

587.  04 

..do — 

. 

. .  do . 

Custodian  of 
records. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

Ill.  Canal  Com.  in 
1904— U.S.  W.B., 
San.  Dist.  andJU. 
S.  Eng’rs,  1914. 
San.  Dist.,  Chicago- 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 
San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

United  States  Engi¬ 
neers,  Peoria.  XtJ 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


United  States  Engi¬ 
neers,  Peoria,  rf 
San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 


FIGURE  2. 


xo 


519 


500 


180 


no 


460 


450 _ 


440 


4€0 


4J0 


400 


JtSL. 


Of  HWI8830I 

i  288t)'5»0 


H  W  16  83 

'L  »c^*Gor<jet  i 


I09Z 


■s^Lf  1901 
('^<Lvn8«5 

LAMB  94 


of  Dam 


LWI5I0 


V 


LW  18  79/ 


Profile  of  Illinois  River 

from 

GRAFTON  TO  MOUTH  OF  KANKAKEE 

Showing 

Water  Levels  Gages,  &  Other  Data 

m  •  m 

To  Accompany  Report  of 

Alvord  a  Burdick 

tnqlneers  Chicago 

Note 

Profile  of  River  Beet  High  Water  Lines  of  1844  a  1858,  and  Water 
Lines  for  other  years  abu>e  LaSalle  tuHen  from  Profile  of  1903 
mode  by  U  s  Engineers  Below  LaSalle  Water  Lines  ore 
plotted  from  gage  readings 


—  t  .-’C 


i  I  cf  Djm 


LW.I9I0, 


171  Oy 


\,L  8  1834 


fcjt  i 


t  V.  ' 


rL  W  1 983 


_fCr  c  af  of  Don 


t= 


'L 


’1.WI3I0 

=_!ry|,i908 


»  Low  Water  of  1879 
Low  Water  of  1883 
»  Low  Witerof  1004 
Low  Water  of  1*301 
Low  Water  of  1908 
Low  Water  of  1910 


Legend 

•  High  VVate r  of  184 4 
®  High  Water  of  1858 

•  Hig h  Water  of  188  j 
4  High  Water  of  1832 
»  High  Water  of  1904 

•  High  Water  of  190  2 

•  High  Water  of  1913 


-  H  W  1844} 

--^jhS^x~Z - * — L 


4  70 


400 


450 


440. 


-i—  *  _cHWI83f 
-•  iUWHOK 

ctmuiT'^  30 


/TCrsst  Of  DombWbr«rKl4 
Cnc-sf  of  Dam  arO«r  1900 


if  " 


nVi 


420 


410 


4  00 


230 


280 


270 


260 


250 


Z4C 


230 


220 


210 


200 


ISO 


180 


170 


160 


130 


120 


100 


70 


60 


50 


40 


Mills  Above  GRAffON 


Elevations  Above  Memphis  Datum 


3;rjDii 

©KiWOttS  MAS3©A!<] 

eaeATc  favifi  suoisaV-o  as-ojA/sfl 

eZ3A_M  £UOi.  'v'TA.qaV;?-'!  SIOHLUl  HO 

*  «►- 

"te  *r©q«B  yl t  vav,  *  scoA  ;  T 

>  r*';:.  mjS  A  c  c.  o  vJA 

*  g-  ; 


Staoe  vac  Cquaj-cd  or  Exceeded 


Feet  Above  Low  Water  or  1894-  Feet  Above  Low  Water  or  1894 


FIGURE  3. 


Diagram  Showing 

Prevalence  of  Various  River  Stages 
on  Illinois  River  at  Various  Places 


To  Accompany  the  Report  of 

Alvord&  Burdick 

Engineer?. 


Bearostown 

89  Mile*  above  Grafton 
LW.  1894-5.7  Gage 


Average  Number  or  Days  per  Year  in  which  Given 
Stage  ws  Equaled  or  Exceeded 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS — SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


27 


TABLE  NO.  1 — Concluded. 


Number. 

Miles  abovi 
Grafton. 

General  location. 

Elevation  above 

Memphis 

datum. 

Reads 
up  or 
down. 

Years  covered 

by  records. 

By  whom 
established. 

Custodian  of 
records. 

287.3 

So-  Joliet— above  McDonough 

St . 

586.  86 

Down.. 

Sanitary  Dist. . 

287.5 

So.  Joliet— McDonough  St.  Br. 

587.  07 

. .  do — 

. 

•  *  do •••••••»••• 

287.6 

So.  Joliet — C.  R.  I.  &  P.  R.  R. 

Br .  . 

587.  03 

.  .do.... 

.  .do . 

288.8 

Joliet— Dam  No.  1 . 

587. 04 

..do — 

m  •  dO  •••*••••>•• 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

290.0 

Joliet — E.  J.  &  E.  Bridge . 

587.  02 

.  .do.... 

. . 

m  •  dO 

55 

Joliet— below  Adam's  Dam . 

520. 65 

Both. . . 

1883 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. .. 

56 

288.8 

Joliet— below  dam . 

544.  65 

. .  do — 

’03-’04 

Econ.  L.  &  P. 

Co . 

Econ.  L.  &  Power 

Co.,  Joliet. 

288.8 

Joliet— above  dam . 

544.  65 

. .  do — 

’01-’04 

•  .  do  ••••••••••• 

Econ.  L.  &  Power 

Co.,  Joliet. 

57 

Joliet — above  Dam  No.  1 . 

543.  76 

. .  do _ 

’92-’98 

Sanitary  Dist. . 

58 

288.5 

Joliet — Lock  No.  5 . 

538.  23 

.  .do _ 

’93-’04 

Ill.  Canal  Com. 

Illinois  Canal  Com. , 

Lockport. 

292.0 

Lockport  (J  mile  below) . 

587. 18 

Down. . 

Sanitary  Dist.. 

59 

292.8 

Lockport.  .*. . . . 

586. 97 

..do.... 

’OO-’Ol 

U.  S.  Eng’rs. .. 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

293.3 

Lockport  Controlling  AVorks. . . . 

587.  04 

. .  do — 

. . 

Sanitary  Dist.. 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

293.3 

Lockport  Controlling  Works. . . . 

586. 97 

..do — 

.......... 

..do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

293.5 

Lockport  Controlling  Works. . . . 

590.  08 

. .  do — 

.......... 

. .  do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

60 

308.0 

Willow  Springs . 

587.  04 

• .  do. ... 

’90,  ’92-’9S 

..do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

61 

314.0 

Riverside*. . 

587.  04 

. .  do. ... 

’86-’04 

.  .do . 

San.  Dist.,  Chicago. 

62 

Des  Plaines  Bridge . 

587. 13 

. .  do _ 

’87-’98 

. .  do . 

Note.— Numbers  In  first  column  refer  to  gages  listed  in  Appendix  A22  of  United  States  Engineers 
Report  on  14-foot  waterway. 

The  records  of  all  gages  except  those  maintained  by  the  Sanitary 
District  of  Chicago  (these  refer  particularly  to  the  upper  river)  are 
printed  in  the  Report  of  the  U.  S.  Engineers  on  the  “Fourteen  Foot 
Waterway”*,  and  include  all  readings  up  to  1904  inclusive.  For  the 
purposes  of  this  report,  these  gage  records  have  been  brought  down  to 
July,  1914.  Space  here  prevents  their  reproduction  in  full,  but  numerous 
exhibits  herewith  attached  give  the  result  of  the  same  in  so  far  as  they 
throw  light  upon  the  matters  herein  discussed.  The  complete  gage 
records  are  on  file  at  the  office  of  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission. 

Fig.  2  shows  a  condensed  profile  of  the  river  bed,  and  the  extreme 
high  and  low  water  marks  in  various  years. 

Fig.  3  shows  diagrammaticallv  the  prevalence  of  various  gage 
heights  at  salient  points  upon  the  river,  namely  at  Grafton,  where  the 
gage  is  on  the  Mississippi  immediately  below  the  mouth  of  the  Illinois, 
and  is  therefore  influenced  not  only  by  the  Illinois,  but  principally  by 
the  larger  watershed  of  the  Mississippi;  at  Valley  City  about  midway 
between  the  Kampsville  and  LaGrange  dams,  and  near  the  head  of  the 
reach  in  which  the  levee  operations  have  been  most  extensive ;  at  Beards- 
town  just  below  the  junction  of  the  Sangamon  River,  the  largest  tribu¬ 
tary  above  the  Illinois  River  mouth;  and  at  the  foot  of  Peoria  Lake 
which  is  probably  the  best  flow  gaging  station  on  the  river. 

The  diagrams.  Fig.  3  indicate  the  average  number  of  days  in  each 
year  in  which  various  gage  heights  are  equalled  or  exceeded,  and  thus 
serve  to  show  the  prevalence  and  duration  of  various  river  stages.  The 


*  59th  Congress  Document  No.  263. 


28 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

heights  as  shown  at  the  left  of  the  diagrams  refer  to  feet  above  the  low 
water  of  1894,  and  at  the  right,  the  stage  upon  the  local  gage,  the 
zeros  of  the  gages  being  at  various  elevations  in  reference  to  low  water 
and  the  Memphis  datum  plane.  Two  curves  are  shown  for  each  place, 
namely,  the  average  conditions  from  1900  to  1913  inclusive,  and  from 
1890  to  1899  inclusive,  in  order  to  visualize  the  effect  of  the  increased 
flow  of  water  since  the  opening  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  January 
1,  1900.  It  is  apparent  however,  that  a  large  part  of  the  differences 
shown  must  be  ascribed  to  differences  in  the  natural  run-off  during  these 
two  periods,  for  the  decade  preceding  1900  is  known  to  be  one  of 
relatively  small  natural  flow.  This  is  evidenced  by  the  diagram  refer¬ 
ring  to  the  Grafton  gage  on  which  the  effect  of  the  Illinois  River  flow 
is  comparatively  slight,  which  shows  the  prevalence  of  materially  smaller 
gage  heights  prior  to  1900  than  subsequent  thereto. 

Excepting  at  Valley  City,  there  has  been  no  change  in  the  river 
likely  to  materially  affect  gage  heights  during  the  period  considered, 
except  flow.  The  conditions  for  the  decade  previous  to  1900  at  Valley 
City  are  not  shown,  on  account  of  the  interruption  in  the  record  caused 
by  the  construction  of  the  Kampsville  dam  completed  in  1893.  In  order 
to  obtain  ten  full  years  at  Grafton,  the  years  1888  and  1889  were  used 
on  account  of  the  interruption  of  the  records  for  the  years  1892  and 
1893.  In  a  few  cases  it  was  necessary  to  interpolate  gage  heights  during 
the  season  of  the  year  when  the  river  was  frozen  over.  It  is  believed 
in  so  doing,  that  the  error  is  small.  To  have  omitted  the  consideration 
of  these  evidently  low  water  periods  would  have  introduced  serious  error. 

The  gage  at  Beardstown,  it  is  believed,  typifies  conditions  generally 
throughout  the  river  valley  better  than  any  other  gage,  it  being  just 
below  the  mouth  of  the  Sangamon  where  the  Illinois  has  received  83 
per  cent  of  its  drainage,  and  a  sufficient  distance  upstream  so  that  the 
flow  on  the  Illinois  is  major,  and  the  influence  of  the  Mississippi  stage 
minor.  At  this  place  a  4-foot  stage  or  more  (10  feet  on  the  Beardstown 
gage)  has  prevailed  about  half  the  time  since  1900.  Every  year  an 
8-foot  stage  has  been  reached,  and  upon  the  average  maintained  for 
about  forty-five  days.  A  12-foot  stage  has  been  exceeded  twice.  In 
the  decade  prior  to  1900,  a  1-foot  stage  was  equalled  or  exceeded  about 
half  the  time.  A  2-foot  stage  (8  feet  on  Beardstown  gage)  was  obtained 
every  vear  for  an  average  duration  of  135  days. 

An  examination  of  the  diagrams  above  referred  to,  further  shows 
that  considering  the  stages  equalled  or  exceeded  one-half  the  time,  and 
comparing  the  periods  of  ten  years  prior  and  fourteen  years  subsequent 
to  January  1,  1900,  the  Beardstown  gage  was  2.8  feet  lower  in  the 
earlier  period,  the  Peoria  gage  5.5  feet  lower,  and  the  Grafton  gage 
3  feet  lower.  At  extremely  high  water,  and  again  at  low  water,  the 
differences  are  less. 


TYPICAL  GAGE  RECORDS. 

As  bearing  upon  prevailing  stages  in  different  years  and  different 
seasons  in  individual  years,  Fig.  4  is  presented  which  shows  a  graph 
of  the  daily  gage  heights  at  Grafton  since  1879,  at  La  Grange  both 


- =: 


e  ,s  a 


lO  — b  ,3;r  r.»I3 


FIGURE  4. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS - DAMS — SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


29 


immediately  above  and  below  the  dam  and  lock  since  1889,  and  at  Peoria 
writh  some  short  interruptions  of  record  since  1881.  At  the  bottom  of 
the  diagram  the  approximate  flow  at  Peoria  is  shown,  based  upon  the 
Peoria  rating  curve,  together  with  the  flow  of  the  Chicago  Drainage 
Canal. 

It  will  be  noted  that  extremely  low  water  at  Grafton  has  varied 
only  slightly  since  the  establishment  of  the  gage,  reaching  very  nearly 
or  quite  to  zero  in  the  driest  seasons  up  to  and  including  the  year  1914. 
The  tailwater  at  La  Grange,  namely,  immediately  below  the  dam  receded 
to  between  7  and  8  feet  in  the  dry  years  prior  to  1900.  It  seems  to 
have  been  little  influenced  by  the  construction  of  the  Kampsville  dam 
completed  in  1893.  Beginning  with  the  year  1900,  the  tailwater  has  not 
fallen  below  10  feet  on  the  gage,  and  since  1901  it  has  not  fallen  below 
11  feet.  The  headwater  levels  immediately  above  the  dam  likewise  indi¬ 
cate  increasing  flows  during  the  low  water  season  since  1900. 

The  diagram  for  La  Grange  further  shows  the  influence  of  flow 
upon  the  head  created  at  the  dam,  the  head  reaching  a  maximum  in  the 
low  water  season,  and  nearly  or  quite  disappearing  in  the  spring  flood 
months. 

The  headwater  levels  prior  to  1899  were  somewhat  influenced  by 
dashboards  placed  upon  the  crest  of  the  dam,  which  increased  the  depth 
of  water  above  the  same.  In  1894,  dashboards  were  placed  upon  all 
four  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  dams.  Flashboards  were  used  more  or  less  at 
LaGrange  from  1890  to  1899,  but  have  not  since  been  used  at  that  place. 

NATURAL  FLOW. 

At  the  present  time  during  dry  seasons,  the  flow  of  the  Illinois 
Eiver  is  largely  artificial  by  reason  of  the  Lake  Michigan  water  diverted 
to  the  river  through  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal.  Prior  to  January  17, 
1900,  the  conditions  were  natural  except  for  the  small  amount  of  water 
pumped  through  the  Ulinois-Michigan  Canal. 

Table  No.  2  shows  the  flow  of  the  Illinois  River  at  Peoria  during 
each  month  of  the  years  1890  to  1900  inclusive,  as  estimated  by  Jacob 
A.  Harman,  C.  E.,  and  published  in  the  report  of  the  Illinois  State 
Board  of  Health  on  Sanitary  Investigations  of  the  Illinois  River  tribu¬ 
taries  in  1901.  Table  No.  3  is  a  summary  of  the  years  1890  to  1899 
inclusive,  and  a  comparison  thereof  with  the  rainfalls  in  those  years. 

The  flows  are  estimated  from  gage  heights  and  a  comparison 
thereof  with  seven  measurements  of  flow  at  various  stages  of  river 
ranging  from  4  feet  to  19  feet  at  the  lower  wagon  bridge,  Peoria.  These 
figures  probably  represent  a  maximum  estimate,  as  a  greater  number  of 
subsequent  measurements  seems  to  indicate  somewhat  smaller  flows, 
especially  at  the  middle  gage  readings. 

In  reference  to  these  figures,  the  following  is  quoted  from  Mr. 
Harman’s  report  above  referred  to : 


30 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


TABLE  NO.  2— FLOW  OF  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER  AT  PEORIA,  ILLINOIS. 
As  estimated  by  Jacob  A.  Harman,  C.  E.,  Drainage  area  13,480  square  miles. 


Discharge  in  second-feet. 

Run-off. 

Month. 

Maximum. 

Minimum. 

Depth- 

inches. 

Second- 

feet— 

square 

mile. 

• 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

Mean. 

1890 

January . 

12.3 

20.329 
10, 395 
13,025 

6.2 

4,706 

12,201 

8, 523 
9,551 

1.025 

.905 

Februray . 

9.  0 

7.  7 

i,  455 

.712 

.632 

March.  /. . 

10.0 

6.7 

5,548 
14,  765 

.802 

.709 

April . 

13.8 

25, 996 
18,  256 

10.6 

19, 395 
13,  025 

1.628 

1.440 

May . 

11.7 

8.8 

9;  907 
10, 150 

1.093 

.966 

June . 

13.3 

24;  034 
17,923 
1,221 
1.474 

8.9 

17;  103 

1.436 

1.  268 

J  uly . 

11.6 

3.0 

'992 

6,  950 

.  583 

.515 

August . 

3.3 

3.0 

992 

1,066 
.  1.303 

1.800 
1.950 

.089 

.078 

September . 

3.6 

3.  2 

1,221 

723 

.  109 

.090 

October . 

4.9 

2,854 

2,494 

2.6 

.  151 

.  133 

November . 

4.  6 

3.6 

1,474 

.  159 

.  144 

December . 

4.4 

2;  268 

3.8 

1,  657 

1,850 

.  155 

.  136 

Y  ear . 

13.8 

25, 996 

2,854 

9,  433 
13,  025 

2.6 

723 

7,893 

7.  942 

.  58S 

1891 

January . 

4.9 

3.8 

1,657 

1,752 

2, 193 
2,793 

.  185 

.162 

F  ebruary . 

8.6 

3.9 

.235 

.206 

March . 

10.0 

6.  7 

5;  548 
13,880 
2,854 

2, 732 
1,221 
1,066 

8. 808 
22,  649 

.739 

.653 

April . 

15.0 

30,985 
22, 140 
10, 150 

10.3 

1.903 

1.682 

May . 

12.8 

4.9 

9,988 

5,906 

2,612 

1,286 

.839 

.741 

June . 

8.9 

4.8 

.496 

.437 

July . 

7. 1 

6,  275 

3.3 

.  218 

.  194 

August . 

3.9 

1.752 

3. 1 

.108 

.094 

September . 

3.4 

1,303 

992 

3.0 

992 

1,055 

892 

.088 

.  077 

October . 

3.0 

2.7 

786 

.076 

.067 

November . 

5.0 

2,980 

4,233 

2.9 

921 

1,737 

.  146 

.128 

December . 

5.9 

4.7 

2,612 

3,549 

.298 

.262 

Y  ear . 

15.0 

30,985 

4,080 
6,  275 

2.7 

786 

5,  289 

5.331 

.392 

1892 

J  anuary . 

5.8 

4.7 

2,612 

3, 108 

.260 

.  229 

February . 

7. 1 

4.7 

2,612 

4,335 

.364 

.321 

March. . . . 

8. 5 

9,201 
28, 858 
69,  031 
48, 130 

42.745 

12. 746 
2,612 
2,  268 
2,  732 
3,372 

7.0 

6,089 

7, 763 

.652 

.575 

April . 

14.5 

8. 1 

8,303 

20,517 

1.722 

1.521 

May . 

21.9 

10.9 

15,678 

46,  342 

3.  889 

3.440 

June . 

18.5 

14.4 

28,441 

35, 977 

3.  020 

2.  672 

July . 

17.5 

10.0 

13,  025 

27, 615 

2.318 

2.032 

August . 

9.9 

4.4 

2,  268 

5,  725 

.481 

.425 

September . 

4.7 

4.2 

2,  054 
1,850 

2,302 

.  193 

.170 

October . 

4.4 

4.0 

1,980 

.165 

.  147 

November . 

4.8 

4.0 

1,850 

2,202 

.  185 

.  165 

December . 

5.3 

4.5 

2,380 

2,885 

.241 

.212 

Year . 

21.9 

69,031 

4.0 

1,850 

13, 396 

13.  490 

.994 

1893 

January . 

4.7 

2,612 
25, 996 
54,  570 
33, 175 

4.  1 

1,950 

2,  214 

.  186 

.  164 

February . 

13.8 

4.3 

2, 160 

11,721 
37,  296 

.984 

.869 

March. . . 

19.6 

13.2 

23, 649 

3. 132 

2. 768 

April . 

15.5 

11.6 

17, 923 

24,  571 

2. 064 

1. 823 

May . 

16.5 

3L  771 

11.9 

18, 934 

29,  068 

2.  440 

2.  176 

June . 

11.7 

18,  256 

8.3 

8,  745 

14,914 

1.  254 

1.  107 

July . 

7.9 

7',  874 

3.6 

1,474 

3,464 

.291 

.  2/5 

August . 

3.6 

1,474 

3.0 

992 

1,362 

.  115 

.  101 

September . 

3.6 

i;  474 
1,850 

3.0 

992 

1, 156 

.  107 

.084 

0  ctober . 

4.0 

3.5 

1,387 

1,752 

.  147 

.  129 

November . 

4.  1 

1,950 

3.8 

1,657 

1,  765 

.  148 

.  130 

December . 

5.0 

2,980 

4.0 

1,850 

2,272 

.  191 

.  168 

Year . 

19.6 

54,  570 

4,  233 

3.0 

992 

10,966 

11.  060 

.815 

1894 

January . 

5.9 

4.9 

2,854 

3,372 

.288 

.256 

February . 

6.3 

4,868 

5.4 

3,  509 

4,U>7 

.344 

.  301 

March.  ”  . 

12.0 

19,  277 

6.0 

4,390 

13,  m 

1.  141 

1.008 

April . 

9.0 

10',  395 

7.  4 

6, 851 

7,905 

.664 

.586 

May . 

9.2 

10, 894 

6.8 

5,  725 

8,413 

.  706 

•  624 

FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS — SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


31 


TABLE  NO.  2— Continued. 


M onth. 


June . 

July . 

August. . . . 
September 
October. .. 
November. 
December. 

Year.. 


1895 

January . 

February . 

March . 

April . 

May . 

June . 

July . 

August . 

September . 

October . 

November . 

December . 

Year . 


1896 

January . 

February . 

March . 

April . 

May . 

June . 

July . 

August . 

September . 

October . 

November . 

December . 

Year . 


1897 

January . . 

February . 

March . . 

April . . 

May . 

June . 

July . 

August . 

September . 

October . 

November . 

December . 

Y  ear . 


1898 

January . 

February . 

March . 

April . 

May . 

June . 

July . 

August . 

September. . 

October . 

November . 

December . 

Year . 


Discharge  in  second-feet. 

Run-off. 

Maximum 

Minimum. 

Mean. 

Depth — 
inches. 

Second- 

feet— 

square 

mile. 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

7.  2 

6,464 

4.  4 

2,  268 

3,481 

.293 

.258 

4.3 

2, 160 

3.4 

1,303 

1,657 

.  139 

.  122 

3.5 

1,387 

3. 1 

1,066 

1,208 

.  101 

.088 

6.4 

5,034 

3.2 

1,142 

3,283 

.275 

.242 

4.9 

2,  854 

3.8 

1,657 

1,825 

.  153 

.  135 

4.3 

2, 160 

3.8 

1,657 

2,  059 

.  173 

.152 

5.  1 

3, 108 

4.3 

2, 160 

2, 495 

.  210 

.  185 

12.0 

19,  277 

3. 1 

1,066 

4,460 

4.487 

.331 

4.7 

2,612 

3.3 

1,221 

1,502 

.  126 

.  Ill 

•  6.7 

5,  548 

3. 5 

1,387 

2,  160 

.  182 

.  160 

8.0 

8,  087 

5.8 

4,  082 

5, 998 

.504 

.445 

7.3 

6,  656 

5.  2 

3,239 

5,008 

.420 

.371 

5.0 

2,980 

3.9 

1,752 

2,437 

.205 

.181 

3.9 

1,752 

3.1 

1,066 

1,387 

.  116 

.102 

6.3 

4,868 

3.7 

1,564 

2, 624 

.220 

.194 

5.3 

3,372 

3.4 

1,303 

1,834 

.  153 

.134 

5.5 

3,648 

3.6 

1,474 

2,450 

.206 

.  181 

4.  1 

1,950 

3.6 

1,387 

1,590 

.135 

.  115 

4.6 

2,  494 

3.7 

1,564 

2,059 

.  172 

.  151 

14.9 

30,554 

4.3 

2, 160 

11,022 

.  925 

.817 

14.9 

30, 554 

3.  1 

1,066 

3,338 

3.364 

.247 

14.3 

28, 027 

8.2 

8,523 

15,  555 

1.306 

1.153 

11. 1 

16,303 

8.1 

8,303 

11,257 

.945 

.834 

11.9 

18, 934 

8.3 

8,745 

13,767 

1.156 

1.020 

8.4 

8, 971 

6.6 

5,373 

6,999 

.588 

.519 

10.2 

13,592 

5.3 

3,372 

7,  124 

.598 

.526 

10.0 

13,  025 

5.8 

4,082 

7, 585 

.636 

.561 

9.2 

10,  894 

3.6 

1,474 

3,524 

.296 

.261 

9.7 

12,  201 

6.7 

5,  548 

8,390 

.  705 

.624 

6.6 

5,373 

5.4 

3,509 

4,  148 

.349 

.308 

8.9 

10, 150 

5.8 

4,082 

7,  029 

.590 

.521 

8.  1 

8,303 

5.8 

4,082 

6,464 

.543 

.480 

7.4 

6,  851 

5.4 

3,509 

5, 350 

.449 

.396 

14.3 

28,  027 

3.6 

1,474 

8,099 

8. 161 

.600 

14.9 

30, 554 

5.4 

3,509 

22, 786 

1.912 

1.689 

13.8 

25, 996 

10.6 

14,  765 

18, 738 

*  1.574 

.  1.390 

18.3 

47,  019 

12.6 

21,408 

34,527 

2.900 

2.  560 

17.3 

4,720 

11.2 

16,621 

25,  231 

2. 119 

1.852 

11.5 

17, 592 

6.8 

5,725 

12,540 

1.  053 

.930 

9.6 

11,933 

4.5 

2,380 

5,666 

.475 

.419 

9. 1 

10, 643 

4.9 

2,854 

5,607 

.473 

.417 

4.7 

2,612 

3.8 

1,657 

1,852 

.155 

.136 

3.9 

1,752 

3.7 

1,564 

1,734 

.146 

.  128 

3.8 

1,657 

3.7 

1,564 

1,549 

.  128 

.  113 

4.9 

2,854 

3.8 

1,657 

2,  115 

.177 

.156 

4.4 

2,  268 

4.1 

1,950 

1,734 

.146 

.128 

18.3 

47,  019 

3.7 

1,564 

11, 173 

11.258 

.826 

7.7 

7,  455 

4.0 

1,850 

3,845 

.322 

.285 

13.4 

24,421 

6.9 

5,906 

15, 180 

1.  275 

1. 126 

19.3 

52,  766 

11.6 

17,923 

31,643 

2. 658 

2.346 

19.2 

52, 169 

10.9 

15, 678 

29, 468 

2.476 

2. 186 

14.  1 

27,  206 

8.8 

9,  907 

17,  275 

1.451 

1.281 

13.5 

24,  810 

8.8 

9,907 

15,  935 

1.339 

1. 182 

9.1 

10,643 

3.5 

1,387 

4,  259 

.357 

.315 

5.7 

3,935 

4.0 

1,850 

2,678 

.225 

.198 

•  5.8 

4,082 

4.4 

2,  268 

3,372 

.283 

.249 

8.0 

8,  087 

4.7 

2,612 

3,762 

.315 

.278 

10.0 

13,  025 

7.2 

6,464 

9,  559 

.800 

.707 

8.4 

8,  971 

5.9 

4,233 

6, 102 

.512 

.451 

19.3 

52, 766 

3.5 

1,387 

11,923 

12.  013 

.884 

REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


QQ 


TABLE  NO.  2— Concluded. 


Discharge  in  second -feet. 

Run-off. 

Month. 

Maximum. 

Minimum. 

Depth — 
inches. 

Second- 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

Gage. 

Dis¬ 

charge. 

Mean. 

feet— 

square 

mile. 

1899 

January . 

9.3 

11, 149 

7.5 

7,  049 

9,641 

.809 

.715 

February . 

10.6 

14,  765 

5.3 

3,372 

6,264 

.526 

.464 

March . 

15.1 

31,417 

11.4 

17, 265 

27,308 

2.  294 

2.026 

April . 

13.0 

22,  889 

9.0 

10,395 

17,730 

1.490 

1.318 

May . 

8.7 

9,  669 

6.7 

5,  548 

7,100 

.596 

.526 

June . 

8.7 

9,669 

4. 1 

1,950 

5,954 

.500 

.442 

July . 

6.2 

4,  706 

3.8 

1,  657 

2, 888 
1,678 

.241 

.141 

.212 

August . 

4.4 

2.268 

3.4 

1,303 

.124 

September . 

4.3 

2, 160 

3.7 

1,564 

1,813 

.  153 

.134 

October . 

4.6 

2,  494 

4.0 

1,850 

2,  054 

.  172 

.152 

November . 

5.  1 

3, 108 

4.4 

2, 268 

2, 660 

.224 

.196 

December . 

6.8 

5,  725 

4.5 

2,380 

.  3,448 

.290 

.259 

Year . 

15.  1 

31,417 

3.4 

1,303 

7,378 

7.436 

.547 

1900 

January . 

8.1 

8,303 

4.9 

2,  874 

4,924 

.416 

.365 

February . 

12.4 

20, 686 

7.5 

7,  049 

14,  500 

1.218 

1.076 

March . 

19.9 

56, 401 

11.3 

16, 941 

35, 100 

2. 948 

2. 604 

April . 

16.9 

39,  717 

11.9 

18, 934 

29, 110 

2.444 

2. 160 

May . 

11.5 

17, 592 

8.6 

9, 433 

12, 036 

1.011 

.893 

June . 

8.9 

10, 150 

6.8 

5,  725 
4,868 

8,  093 

.677 

.597 

July . 

7.3 

6,  656 

6.3 

5, 590 

.470 

.416 

August . 

8.1 

8,303 

6.7 

5, 548 

7, 149 

.601 

.530 

September . 

8.2 

8, 523 

5.3 

3,372 

4,868 

5, 666 

5, 382 

.476 

.420 

October . 

7.0 

6,  089 

6.3 

.452 

.399 

November . 

9.5 

11.668 

6.7 

5,548 

7,  071 

.594 

.  525 

December . 

9.7 

12,  201 

8.0 

8,  087 

9, 688 

.814 

.718 

Year . 

19.9 

56,  401 

4.9 

2,  874 

12, 026 

12. 121 

.892 

TABLE  NO.  3 — SUMMARIZED  FLOW  OF  ILLINOIS  RIVER  AT  PEORIA. 

By  Jacob  A.  Harman,  C.  E. 


Year. 

Run-off 

inches. 

Rainfall 
— inches. 

Per  cent 
running 
off. 

Cubic 
feet  per 
second. 

Second - 
feet  per- 
square 
mile. 

1890 . 

7. 942 

33.  79 

23.6 

7,  893 
5,  289 
13,  396 

.588 

1891 . 

5.331 

32.30 

16.5 

.392 

1892 . 

13. 555 

40. 54 

33.4 

.994 

1893 . 

11.060 

28. 80 

28.4 

10, 966 
4,460 

.815 

1894 . 

4,487 
3.  364 

28.  72 

15.6 

.331 

1895 . 

29.81 

11.3 

3,338 

8,099 

.247 

1896 . 

8. 161 

36.03 

22.6 

.600 

1897 . 

11.  258 

32. 63 

34.5 

11, 173 

.826 

1898 . 

12.  013 

41.49 

29.0 

11,923 

.884 

1899 . 

7.436 

31.11 

23.9 

7,378 

.547 

Averages . 

8.460 

33. 52 

25.2 

8,  391 

.622 

Without  flow  from  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal. . . . 

7.860 

33.52 

23.9 

7, 791 

.576 

“The  period  under  discussion  (1890-1899)  has  been  one  of  low  rainfall, 
the  average  for  the  ten  years  having  been  33.52",  while  the  normal  rainfall 
for  Illinois  as  given  by  Leverett  in  Water  Resources  of  Illinois  is  37.85", 
an  average  annual  shortage  of  4.33".  During  that  time  the  rainfall  exceeded 
the  normal  only  two  years,  namely,  1892  and  1898,  the  intervening  years 
being  regarded  as  the  greatest  period  of  severe  drouth  that  has  been  experi¬ 
enced  in  this  region  since  it  has  been  settled.”  *  *  * 

“The  actual  low  water  flow  at  Peoria  during  the  last  ten  years  has  for 
days  and  sometimes  weeks  been  as  low  as  1,000  to  1,200  cubic  feet  per  second. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS — SUBMERGED  LANDS.  33 

approximately  600  cubic  feet  of  which  has  been  furnished  to  the  Illinois- 
Michigan  Canal  by  the  pumps  at  Bridgeport.  *  *  *  The  natural  flow  of 

the  Illinois  River  at  Peoria  has  apparently  been  as  low  as  200  to  300  cubic 
feet  per  second.” 


U.  S.  GEOLOGICAL  SUEVEY  MEASUEEMENTS  AT  PEOEIA. 

% 

During  the  years  1903,  1904,  1905,  and  1906,  the  U.  S.  Geological 
Survey  maintained  a  gaging  station  at  the  Peoria  and  Pekin  Eailway 
bridge  one  and  one-half  miles  southwest  of  Peoria.  Table  No.  4  sum¬ 
marizes  the  flow  as  reported  in  Water  Supply  Papers  Nos.  98,  171  and 
207.  Flows  are  given  for  the  open  water  months  only.  During  the 
years  of  observation,  the  Drainage  Canal  being  in  operation,  the  flow  on 
no  day  was  less  than  6,170  second-feet. 


TABLE  NO.  4— ESTIMATED  MONTHLY  DISCHARGE  OF  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER  AT 
PEORIA,  ILLINOIS— DRAINAGE  AREA  13,250  SQUARE  MILES. 

Made  by  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  and  reported  in  Water  Supply  Papers  Nos.  98, 171  and  207. 


Month. 

Discharge  in  second-feet. 

Run-off- 

Maxi¬ 

mum. 

Mini¬ 

mum. 

Mean. 

Second- 
feet  per 
square 
mile. 

Dept  h  in 
inches. 

1903 

March  10-31 . 

40,589 

3.  06 

2. 50 

April . . . 

44,  090 

22, 830 

31, 169 

2.35 

2.62 

May . 

25, 360 

11,  230 

17,332 

1.31 

1.51 

June . 

14,870 

8, 000 

10, 152 

.77 

.86 

July  1-8 .  .  . 

9, 160 

.69 

.  21 

August  22-31 . 

8,637 

.65 

.24 

September . 

16,  065 

8,  620 

12, 127 

.92 

1.03 

October . 

14,  080 

11,565 

13, 129 

.99 

1.  14 

November . 

11,420 

7,850 

9,790 

.74 

.83 

December . 

11,420 

8,460 

9,500 

.72 

.83 

1904  ' 

• 

March  21-31 . 

57,  650 

37, 650 

51,330 

.387 

1.58 

April . 

54,950 

26,  440 

39,  000 

2. 94 

3,28 

May . 

28,410 

13,910 

19,310 

1.46 

1.68 

June . 

13,910 

7,713 

11,  000 

.830 

.926 

July . 

8, 572 

7, 118 

7,  789 

.588 

.  678 

August . 

8,092 

7,  008 

7, 577 

.572 

.660 

September . 

9,614 

6,860 

7,531 

.568 

.634 

October . 

9,822 

7,  491 

8, 508 

.642 

.740 

November . 

7,450 

7, 156 

7, 333 

.553 

.617 

December  1-12 . 

7,400 

7,  080 

7, 186 

.542 

.242 

1905 

April . 

20, 480 

16,  820 

18, 760 

1.42 

1.58 

May . * 

35, 500 

16,  820 

24,  580 

1.86 

2.  14 

June . 

22,930 

14,460 

19, 320 

1.46 

1.63 

July. . . 

13, 740 

8  044 

10  490 

.  792 

.913 

August . 

8,092 

7,575 

7,’  875 

.594 

.685 

September . 

10, 125 

7, 659 

9,  134 

.689 

.769 

October . 

8,  044 

7,008 

7, 587 

.573 

.661 

November . 

8,  044 

6,900 

7,473 

.564 

.629 

December . 

8, 355 

7,  491 

7, 851 

.593 

.684 

1906 

January . 

19, 800 

8,460 

11,500 

0. 871 

1.00 

February . 

24,  800 

16,  000 

18,700 

1.42 

1.48 

March . 

27,  000 

18, 700 

23,  600 

1.79 

2.  06 

April . 

25, 500 

17,  100 

22, 700 

1.72 

1.92 

16, 300 

9,  220 

12,  000 

.909 

1.05 

June . 

9,  280 

7,360 

8, 350 

.633 

.71 

July  1-21 . 

7, 360 

6, 170 

6, 620 

.502 

.39 

— 3  R  L 


34 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


FLOW  OF  TEIBUTARIES. 

Mr.  Harman  further  summarizes  the  available  records  of  flow  on 
the  Des  Plaines,  a  northern  tributary  of  the  Illinois,  and  compares  it 
with  the  rainfall  from  1887  to  1898,  as  shown  on  Table  Ho.  5  herewith. 
Table  Ho.  6  is  also  presented,  comparing  the  flow  on  the  Des  Plaines 
with  that  of  the  Illinois  where  the  records  overlap.  It  indicates  that 
the  average  conditions  upon  the  two  rivers  are  quite  similar  as  regards 
aggregate  run-off. 


TABLE  NO.  5— FLOW  OF  THE  DES  PLAINES  RIVER  BASIN  ABOVE  RIVERSIDE. 
From  report  of  Illinois  State  Board  of  Health,  Jacob  A.  Harman,  C.  E. 


*  Year. 

Off- 

inches. 

On- 

inches. 

Per  cent 
of  rain 
running- 
off. 

Second- 
feet  per 
square 
mile. 

1887 . 

13. 18 

29. 13 

45.2 

1.00 

1889 . 

6. 13 

34.95 

17.6 

0.45 

1893 . 1... 

10.38 

29.  03 

35.8 

0.  76 

1894 . 

7.  44 

27.  80 

26.8 

0. 55 

3.08 

30.  48 

10.  1 

0.  23 

1896 . 

5.  04 

33.  74 

15.0 

0.38 

1897 . i 

14.05 

30.  55 

46.0 

1.03 

1898 . 

10.92 

37.  74 

29.0 

0. 81 

Averages . 

S.  777 

31.68 

27.7 

0. 65 

TABLE  NO.  6— COMPARISON  OF  RUN-OFF  ON  DES  PLAINES  AND  ILLINOIS  RIVERS. 
From  report  of  Illinois  State  Board  of  Health,  Jacob  A.  Harman,  C.  E. 


Year. 

Depth  in  inches. 

Second-feet  per  square  mile. 

Des 

Plaines. 

Illinois. 

Illinois 
less  canal. 

.  Des 
Plaines. 

Illinois. 

Illinois 
less  canal. 

1893 . 

10.38 

11.06 

10. 46 

0. 76 

0.815 

0. 769 

1894 . 

7.  44 

4.  49 

3.89 

0.55 

.331 

.  285 

1895 . 

3. 08 

3.  36 

2. 76 

0.23 

.247 

.  201 

1896 . 

5.  04 

8.  16 

7. 56 

0. 38 

.600 

.  554 

1897 . 

14.05 

11.  26 

10.  66 

1.03 

.826 

.780 

1898 . 

10.92 

12.  01 

11.41 

0.81 

.884 

.838 

Averages . 

8.48 

8. 39 

7.79 

0.63 

0.617 

0. 571 

MISCELLANEOUS  ILLINOIS  STREAMS. 

Table  No.  7  is  published  by  the  Illinois  State  Water  Survey,  Series 
No.  11,  Year  1914.  It  is  a  summary  of  the  flow  records  obtained  on 
Illinois  streams  by  the  State  of  Illinois  in  cooperation  with  the  U.  S. 
Geological  Survey  during  the  years  1905  to  1911,  and  a  comparison  of 
the  flows  with  the  rainfalls  prevailing  during  the  time  of  flow  measure¬ 
ments.  These  streams  with  a  few  exceptions,  are  tributaries  of  the 
Illinois  Biver  and  are  all  on  or  adjacent  to  this  watershed.  The  aggre¬ 
gate  average  flows  of  these  streams  for  the  period  considered  is  as 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


35 


shown — .82  second-feet  per  square  mile  of  drainage  area,  which  is 
equivalent  to  10.9"  of  watershed  depth  per  year,  as  compared  to  7.86" 
for  the  Illinois  Eiver  at  Peoria  for  the  period  1890  to  1899  ;  likewise 
upon  the  tributaries,  28.8  per  cent  of  the  rain  that  fell  ran  off  through 
the  streams  as  measured,  as  compared  to  23.4  per  cent  upon  the  Illinois 
during  the  decade  1890  to  1899. 


TABLE  NO.  7— SUMMARY  OF  RAINFALL  AND  RUN-OFF  DATA  IN  ILLINOIS. 

Illinois  State  Water  Survey— No.  II. 


Stream  and  location  of  gaging 
station. 

Watershed  area— square 
miles. 

Dates  of  gagings. 

,  Duration  of  gagings— 

months. 

Rainfall— (monthly 
average). 

Run-off. 

During  gaging  pe¬ 
riod-inches. 

Normal  for  the 
period— inches. 

Per  cent  departure  ' 

from  normal. 

Average  second-feet 

on  watershed. 

Maximum  second- 

feet. 

Minimum  second- 

feet. 

Mean  second-feet. 

Average  second-feet 

per  square  mile. 

Per  cent  of  rainfall.  1 

Rock  River  at  Rockton . 

6150 

1903-09 

67 

3.01 

2. 85 

+  5.6 

16550 

27100 

950 

4790 

0. 78 

28.9 

Fox  River  at  Sheridan . 

2170 

1905-06 

9 

2.97 

3. 02 

—  1.65 

5700 

9780 

240 

1810 

.83 

31.8 

Kankakee  River  at  Momence 

2430 

1905-06 

17 

3. 12 

2. 96 

+  5.4 

6780 

6960 

360 

1980 

.81 

29.2 

Big  Muddy  River  at  Cambon 

735 

1908-11 

37 

3.48 

3.37 

+  3.27 

2290 

11000 

536 

.73 

23.4 

Beaucoup  Creek  at  Pinckney- 

ville . 

227 

1908-11 

37 

3.37 

3. 11 

+  8.4 

685 

2170 

98 

.43 

14.3 

Embarrass  River  at  Oakland. 

535 

1909-11 

21 

3. 08 

2.99 

+  3.0 

1470 

3650 

3 

458 

.86 

31.0 

Embarrass  River  at  St.  Marie 

1540 

1909-11 

21 

3.  18 

3.  25 

—  2.2 

4390 

6210 

100 

1290 

.84 

29.4 

Kaskaskia  River  at  Areola. . . 

390 

1908-11 

39 

3.  08 

2.99 

+  3.0 

1070 

3870 

378 

.97 

35.3 

Kaskaskia  River  at  Shelby- 

ville . 

1030 

1908-11 

41 

3.37 

3.27 

+  3.  1 

3100 

10600 

5.5 

948 

.92 

30.6 

Kaskaskia  River  at  Vandalia 

1980 

1908-11 

40 

3.40 

3.  22 

+  5.6 

6030 

17720 

3.5 

1357 

.69 

22.5 

Kaskaskia  River  at  Carlyle. . 

2680 

1908-11 

40 

3.49 

3.26 

+  7.  1 

8380 

19900 

23 

2213 

.83 

26.6 

Kaskaskia  River  at  New 

Athens . 

5220 

1907-11 

54 

3.75 

3. 39 

+  10.0 

17500 

54400 

162 

5650 

1.  08 

32.3 

Shoal  Creek  at  Breese . 

760 

1909-11 

20 

3.48 

3.52 

—  1.  1 

2370 

6620 

48 

641 

.84 

27.0 

Silver  Creek  at  Lebanon . 

335 

1908-11 

36 

3.  75 

3. 39 

+  10.  1 

1100 

4030 

293 

.88 

26.6 

Skillet  Fork,  Little  Wabash  at 

Wayne  City . .  . . 

481 

1908-11 

35 

3.  26 

3.47 

—  6.  1 

1400 

7760 

.2 

357 

.75 

25.6 

Sangamon  River  atMonticello 

550 

1908-11 

41 

2.98 

3.05 

—  2.3 

1470 

9280 

1.6 

482 

.88 

32.8 

Sangamon  River  at  Riverton 

2560 

1908-11 

41 

3.  17 

3.  21 

—  1.3 

7250 

19200 

60 

2040 

.80 

28. 1 

Sangamon  River  at  Oakford. . 

5000 

1909-11 

16 

2.97 

3.  09 

—  3.9 

13300 

11000 

432 

3240 

.  65 

24.4 

South  Fork  Sangamon  River 

at  Taylorville . 

427 

1908-11 

41 

3.  27 

3.37 

—  2.96 

1250 

4140 

5 

340 

.80 

27.2 

Salt  Creek  at  Kenney . 

459 

1908-11 

40 

2.94 

3.01 

—  2.3 

1210 

5840 

1 

334 

.73 

27.6 

Total . 

35659 

103295 

29235 

Average . 

0.  82 

28.8 

NORMAL  RAINFALL  OF  ILLINOIS. 

Fig.  5  is  a  map  indicating  the  normal  variations  in  rainfall  in  the 
State  of  Illinois  taken  from  the  Illinois  State  Water  Survey  Series  No. 
11,  Year,  1914.  It  shows  the  progressively  increasing  rainfall  from  the 
northern  to  the  southern  end  of  the  State,  the  upper  watershed  of  the 
Illinois  lying  within  a  region  having  a  normal  rainfall  of  30  to  35 
inches,  the  lower  one-half  of  the  watershed  lying  in  territory  where  the 
normal  rainfall  lies  between  35  and  40  inches.  It  has  been  noted  that 
in  the  larger  floods  upon  the  Illinois  River,  the  higher  rainfall  rates  for 
the  days  on  which  the  floods  were  produced,  progressively  increased 
toward  the  southeastern  side  of  the  watershed. 


36 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


MAP 

ILLINOIS 
SHOWING 

AVERAGE  ANNUAL 
PRECIPITATION 


LEGEND 

INCHES  DEPTH 

□  30  TO  35 
VA  35  ••  40 
§3  40  -  45 


FIGURE  5. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS - DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


37 


FLOW  OF  THE  CHICAGO  DRAINAGE  CANAL. 

Since  1848  the  natural  flow  of  the  Illinois  River  has  received  some 
artificial  replenishment  by  Lake  Michigan  water  at  Chicago — prior  to 
January  17,  1900,  through  the  operation  of  pumps  at-  Chicago,  for  the 
water  supply  of  the  Illinois-Michigan  Canal,  and  in  the  later  years  of 
that  period,  to  promote  the  cleanliness  of  the  Chicago  River.  Although 
the  supply  thus  pumped  was  nearly  or  quite  equal  to  the  extreme  low 
water  flow  of  the  Illinois  River  so  far  south  as  Peoria,  the  accession  of 
water  from  this  source  was  small  compared  to  the  aggregate  annual  flow 
of  the  river.  Mr.  Harman  estimates  the  flow  from  the  Illinois-Michigan 
Canal  at  600  cubic  feet  per  second  for  the  10-year  period  previous  to 
1900.  This  is  equivalent  to  .6  of  an  inch  per  year  on  the  watershed 
above  Peoria,  or  about  7  per  cent  of  the  average  flow  of  the  river  at 
that  place  during  the  decade  stated. 

Since  January  17,  1900,  the  previous  water  conditions  have  been 
greatly  changed  through  the  flow  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  which 
has  averaged  from  3,136  second-feet  in  1900  to  7,185  second-feet  in 
1913.  The  flow  in  the  last  named  year  is  equivalent  to  7.1"  on  the 
drainage  area  tributary  to  Peoria,  which  is  about  87  per  cent  of  the 
estimated  average  flow  at  that  place  during  the  decade  immediately  prior 
to  the  opening  of  the  canal.  It  is  equivalent  to  about  3.4"  upon  the 
watershed  tributary  to  the  mouth  of  the  river;  probably  equivalent  to 
about  40  per  cent  of  the  run-off  of  the  prior  decade  at  that  place. 


TABLE  NO.  8— FLOW  OF  THE  CHICAGO  DRAINAGE  CANAL,  1900  TO  1914. 
Data  from  report  on  removal  of  navigation  dams  by  L.  E.  Cooley— cubic  feet  per  second. 


Months. 

1900 

1901 

1902 

1903 

1904 

1905 

1906 

1907 

January . 

1,450 

4,917 

4, 194 

6, 124 

5,  463 

5, 167 

4,  457 

5,303 

February . 

2,315 

5,060 

4,204 

5,750 

5,  170 

5,527 

4,626 

5,  467 

March . 

2,  100 

5,296 

4,233 

5,  361 

4,  708 

5,  546 

4,393 

4,954 

April . 

2,  728 

4,427 

4, 165 

4,638 

4,  946 

4,  737 

4,507 

4,954 

May . 

3,228 

3, 106 

4, 166 

4,570 

5,  125 

4,  120 

4,719 

5,031 

June . 

3,  226 

2,903 

4,  071 

4,812 

4, 100 

4, 124 

4,420 

5, 539 

July . 

3,391 

3,  140 

4,323 

4,870 

4,553 

4,  123 

3,996 

5,600 

August . 

3,  576 

3, 932 

4,  204 

4, 532 

4, 573 

4,290 

3,429 

6,250 

September . 

2, 307 

3,906 

4,291 

4, 330 

4,  141 

4,340 

3,  740 

4, 703 

October . 

3,450 

3,  840 

4,  155 

4,545 

4,  004 

4,510 

5,  221 

4,  205 

November . 

3,813 

3,896 

4,248 

4,686 

4,451 

3,378 

5, 198 

4,395 

December . 

4,  227 

4,  114 

5, 352 

5, 570 

5,  067 

3,919 

4,907 

5,  005 

Mean . 

2,989 

4,041 

4,  302 

4,971 

4, 693 

4, 477 

4,471 

5, 117 

TABLE  NO.  8— Concluded. 


Months. 

1908 

1909 

1910 

1911 

1912 

1913 

1914 

January . 

5, 720 
5,  770 
5,565 
5, 675 
5,837 
6,686 
7, 146 
6,927 
7,093 
7,385 
7,113 
6,542 

5,  782 
5, 525 
5, 681 
6,340 
5, 875 
6, 363 
6, 949 
7, 142 
7,189 
7, 060 
6, 857 
6,298 

6,253 
6, 074 
5,947 

6,  238 

7,  222 
7,684 
7,850 
8,390 
8,381 
7,943 

7,  272 
7, 075 

6,653 
6,647 
6, 235 
6, 550 
7,297 
7,425 

February . 

March. .’ . 

April .  . 

May. . 

June . 

July . 

August . 

September . 

October . 

6,660 
6, 490 
5, 512 

November . 

December . 

Mean . 

5,317 

5, 667 

5,967 

6, 454 

6,378 

7, 193 

38 


KEPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


Table  No.  8  is  a  statement  of  the  average  flow  of  the  Chicago 
Drainage  Canal  in  each  month  up  to  June,  1914,  as  stated  in  the  report 
of  Mr.  Lyman  E.  Cooley,  C.  E.,  on  the  “Removal  of  the  Navigation 
Dams  of  the  Illinois  River.”  The  monthly  flows  are  lacking  for  the 
years  1908  and  1909,  and  a  part  of  1910.  The  same  information  is 
shown  diagrammatically  upon  Fig.  4  at  the  bottom  of  the  diagram.  It 
will  be  observed  that  the  flow  has  gradually  increased  during  the  fifteen 
years  that  the  canal  has  been  operated.  In  the  respective  years  the  flow 
is  nearly  constant,  but  lately  has  been  slightly  greater  in  the  late  sum¬ 
mer  months  than  the  normal  for  the  respective  years.  This  probably 
arises  from  the  desirability  of  greater  dilution  at  the  season  when  the 
sewage  nuisance  is  likely  to  be  most  objectionable. 


EFFECT  ON  LOW  WATER  CONDITIONS. 

The  natural  run-off  of  the  Illinois  Basin  occurs  principally  in  the 
spring  and  early  summer,  whereas  the  water  of  the  Drainage  Canal  is 
nearly  uniformly  distributed  throughout  the  year.  As  would  be  expected, 
therefore,  the  low  water  conditions  are  the  ones  most  markedly  changed 
through  the  accession  of  the  Lake  Michigan  water.  It  has  been  esti¬ 
mated  that  prior  to  1900,  there  were  periods  when  the  flow  at  Peoria 
was  as  low  as  1,000  to  1,200  second-feet.  The  flows  less  than  2,000 
second-feet  were  the  rule  rather  than  the  exception  for  periods  of  from 
one  to  three  months  during  the  summer  and  fall.  Fig.  4  illustrates 
graphically  the  changed  conditions  both  in  gage  height  and  flow  at 
Peoria,  largely  brought  about  through  the  accession  of  this  additional 
water.  Where  gage  heights  at  Peoria  as  low  as  3  feet,  frequently 
occurred  prior  to  1900,  the  lowest  gage  heights  since  1901  have  been 
7  or  8  feet,  and  within  the  past  three  years,  not  less  than  9  feet.  A 
part  of  this  increase  may  have  been  due  to  greater  natural  flow. 

The  additional  water  further  shows  its  effect  in  less  degree  at 
other  gages  downstream,  but  has  apparently  practically  lost  its  effect 
when  Grafton  is  reached,  for  the  lower  water  stages  at  Grafton  have  been 
substantially  the  same  of  late  years  as  previously.  Fig.  4  illustrates  these 
effects  at  Peoria,  the  La  Grange  Dam,  and  Grafton. 

FUTURE  DELIVERY  OF  DRAINAGE  CANAL. 

The  main  channel  of  the  Sanitary  District  has  an  estimated  capacity 
of  14,000  second-feet,  except  for  about  one-quarter  of  its  length,  between 
Summit  and  Robey  Street,  which  is  subject  to  progressive  enlargement. 
The  original  capacity  of  this  section  was  about  8,500  second-feet,  but  is 
now  undergoing  enlargement.  The  Chicago  River  is  being  improved  to 
produce  10,000  second-feet.  With  the  Sag  Channel  tapping  the  Calumet 
River  completed,  also  improvements  now  under  way,  it  will  be  practicable 
to  deliver  about  14,000  second-feet  to  the  Des  Plaines  River. 

The  Secretary  of  War  by  virtue  of  the  Act  of  March  3,  1899, 
refused  to  permit  more  than  4,167  second-feet  to  be  drawn  from  the  lake 
at  Chicago,  and  in  1912,  enjoined  the  Sanitary  District  from  with¬ 
drawing  a  greater  volume.  The  issues  of  this  case  are  now  in  court. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS — SUBMERGED'  LANDS 


39 


The  State  law  1111(161  which  the  Sanitary  District  was  organized 
requires  that  the  sewage  of  the  district  shall  be  diluted  with  lake  water 
at  a  rate  equivalent  to  3,333  second-feet  for  each  million  of  population 


FIGURE  5A. 
LaGrange  Lock  and  Dam. 


in  the  district.  The  total  population  of  the  Sanitary  District  by  U.  S. 
Census  1910,  was  2,311,810.  A  compliance  with  this  provision  in  the 
law  would  require  a  flow  of  about  7,700  second-feet. 


40 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


NAVIGATION  DAMS. 

The  Illinois  River  lias  been  a  highway  of  commerce  from  the  earliest 
settlement  of  the  country.  For  the  purpose  of  maintaining  low  water, 
navigation  dams  and  locks  have  been  constructed  at  Karnpsville,  La 
Grange,  Copperas  Creek  and  Henry  in  the  early  days  producing  slack 
water  navigation  as  far  up  the  river  as  La  Salle,  the  terminus  of  the 
Illinois-Michigan  Canal.  The  dams  at  Henry  and  Copperas  Creek  were 
completed  in  1871  and  1877  respectively,  and  were  constructed  by  the 
State  of  Illinois.  The  dam  at  La  Grange  was  completed  in  1889,  and 
the  dam  at  Karnpsville  in  1893.  These  two  dams  were  built  by  the 
U.  S.  Government.  Table  No.  9  shows  some  salient  facts  relating  to 
these  dams.  Their  locations  are  shown  upon  Fig.  6.  They  are  also 
shown  on  several  other  maps. 


TABLE  NO.  9— DATA  OF  ILLINOIS  RIVER  NAVIGATION  DAMS. 


Kamps- 

ville. 

La  Grange. 

Copperas 

Creek. 

Henry. 

Miles  above  Grafton . 

31 

77 

137 

196 

Year  completed . 

1893 

1899 

1877 

1871 

Crest  level  Memphis  datum . 

*421.9 

432.63 

*439.  0 

*443. 1 

Length  of  crest  between  abutments — feet . 

1,200 

8.93 

819 

640 

540 

Head  created  under  various  water  conditions,  i.  e. 
difference  in  water  level  immediately  above  and 
below  dam  and  locks — feet — 

Low  water  of  1894 . 

7.45 

4.  28 

5. 19 

Low  water  of  1901 . 

6. 14 

5. 60 

2. 38 

2.80 

Usual  head  at  low  water  season  past  5  years . 

Usual  head  during  high  water  months . 

2.  6  to  4.  0 

0.  0  to  0.  2 

3.  2  to  4.  2 

0.  0  to  0. 8 

0. 3  to  0. 6 

0.6  to  1.2 

*  423.9  prior  to  1904.  Several  changes  between  1904  and  1906. 
By  scale  profile  of  1904  Survey  U.  S.  Engineers. 


Under  the  water  conditions  prevailing  at  the  time  of  their  con¬ 
struction,  these  dams  added  materially  to  the  navigability  of  the  stream. 
Thus,,  during  the  low  water  season  of  1894,  the  heads  created,  or 
increased  water  depth  at  each  dam  were  as  follows: 


Feet. 


Karnpsville  .  8.93 

La  Grange . 7.45 

Copperas  Creek  .  4.28 

Henry  .  5.19 


In  the  low  water  season  of  1901  (the  lowest  water  since  the  opening 
of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal),  the  heads  at  the  several  dams  were  as 
follows : 


Karnpsville  . 6.14 

La  Grange .  5.60 

Copperas  Creek .  2.38 

Henry  . ' .  2.80 


The  lowest  water  occurred  between  July  25th  and  August  18th, 
when  the  flow  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  Avas  3,140  second-feet  in 
July,  and  3,932  second-feet  in  August.  This  is  about  one-half  the  flow 
of  the  canal  in  1913. 


ta  ,r 


I'Himuo  u 


Map  Of 

Illinois  River  \  Flood  Plain 

Below  LaSalle 


Accompany  The  Report  Or 
Alvord  &  Burdick 

Enoineebo 


Scauc  op  Mil£B 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


41 


Fig.  7  shows  the  head  at  each  dam  on  the  first  day  of  each  month 
for  the  years  1910  and  1913,  inclusive,  and  would  serve  to  give  a  general 
idea  of  the  heights  prevailing  in  late  years  and  throughout  the  different 


Diagram  Showing 

Prevailing  Heads  at  Navigation  Dams 

on  the  First  Day  of  Each  Month 
1910  TO  J9I5 

Tb  Accomparv  the  Report  c/' 

Auvord  A  Burdick 
Bigtne«rs. 


YEARS 


IB4I 


FIGURE  7. 


months  of  the  year.  It  will  be  observed  that  in  the  high  water  season 
of  the  year  generally,  the  dams  have  practically  no  effect  upon  the  water 
levels  of  the  stream.  During  the  low  water  season,  the  Kampsville  and 


42 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


La  Grange  clams  increase  the  water  level  immediately  above  same  by  the 
amount  of  2  to  4  feet.  At  Copperas  Creek  and  at  Henry,  the  low  water 
effect  is  less  than  1  foot. 


1834 


1805  » \  too  / 


h 

UJ 

Id 

L. 


K 

T 

\7 

r- 

5 

« 

1 

J 

\ 

i-4 

1 

1 

7 

V 

7 

/ 

V 

T- 1 

| 

4 

\ 

/ 

/ 

! 

f 

3 

f  \ 

2 

— 

GOVLKAb  OHLtn 

- - 

l 

| 

1 

J 

0 

-A 

!a 

Diagram  Showing  the 

Head  at  Dams 

AND  THE 

Rise  of  Tail  Water 

Corpparedto  Low  Water  of  1894 
At'  the  time  of  lowest 
water  in  each  year 

To  Accompany  the  Report  of 
Alvord  &.  Burdick 
Engineers  Chicago 

Note: 

— o—  Indicates  Head,  i.e.  difference  be¬ 
tween  wafer  surface  elevations 
above  and  below  dams 

— Indicates  Rise  in  Tail  Water  level 
i.e.  below  the  dam  013  compared 
to  level  in  1894  at  extreme 
low  water 


FIGURE  8. 


Fig.  8  shows  the  heads  created  at  the  several  dams  at  low  water  in 
each  year  since  1894,  and  the  elevation  of  the  water  surface  at  such 
times  immediately  below  the  dams. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


43 


The  effect  upon  water  levels  produced  by  these  dams  will  grow  pro¬ 
gressively  less  should  the  flow  of  the  Drainage  Canal  be  further  increased 
in  the  future. 


REMOVAL  OF  DAMS. 

Prior  to  the  construction  of  the  dams,  consideration  had  been  given 
to  the  project  of  improving  the  navigation  of  the  river  by  the  addition  of 
water  from  Lake  Michigan  under  open  channel  conditions.  This  scheme 
had  been  a  competitor  of  the  slack  water  navigation  project  as  adopted 
and  carried  out.  Since  the  construction  of  the  dams,  numerous  projects 
have  been  studied  looking  toward  the  connection  of  the  Mississippi  River 
and  Lake  Michigan  by  an  improved  waterway.  Several  engineering 
boards  have  given  careful  study  to  the  matter  for  projects  of  various 
depths  of  draft  under  various  assumptions,  as  to  the  amount  of  water 
that  would  be  available  from  Lake  Michigan.  The  projects  most  favored 
for  a  deep  waterway,  14  feet  or  more,  have  contemplated  the  removal  of 
all  four  of  the  existing  dams  in  the  lower  river.  (See  appendix  for 
recommendation  of  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  regarding  removal 
of  dams.) 


SURVEY  OF  1902-1904. 

Under  date  of  December  18,  1905,  the  Secretary  of  War  transmitted 
to  Congress  the  result  of  a  study  by  a  special  board  of  engineers,  relating 
to  a  navigable  waterway  14  feet  deep  from  the  terminus  of  the  Chicago 
Drainage  Canal  to  the  mouth  of  the  Illinois  River,  and  thence  by  way 
of  the  Mississippi  River  to  St.  Louis.  This  report  was  based  upon  an 
investigation,  survey  and  study  covering  a  period  from  September  18, 
1902,  to  December  12,  1905.  The  investigation  included  a  topographical 
.  survey  of  the  river  valley  presented  upon  maps  to  a  scale  of  1  inch  to 
600  feet ;  contours  of  ground  surface  are  shown  at  1  foot  intervals,  and 
sufficient  soundings  of  the  rivers  and  principal  lakes  are  shown  in 
figures  to  form  a  fairly  accurate  conception  of  the  under-water  topo¬ 
graphy.  Without  these  maps  much  of  the  study  in  the  present  report 
would  have  been  impossible.  The  investigation  further  includes  the 
tabulation  of  all  available  past  gage  height  records. 

It  is  fortunate  that  the  flood  of  1904  occurred  during  this  investi¬ 
gation.  Although  not  greatest  in  height,  this  flood  perhaps  produced  as 
high  a  flow  rate  as  any  previous  flood  on  record.  Numerous  measure¬ 
ments  were  made  at  various  places  throughout  the  length  of  the  river, 
and  furnish  an  invaluable  basis  for  estimates  of  the  water  conditions 
likely  to  result  from  the  great  changes  in  the  flood  cross-section  occasioned 
by  the  more  recent  construction  of  levee  districts,  and  the  further  con¬ 
struction  thereof  in  the  future. 

The  original  survey  maps  above  referred  to  are  presented  upon  large 
sheets,  fifty-seven  in  number.  For  convenience  in  reference,  lithograph 
maps  were  prepared  upon  a  smaller  scale  1%  inches  to  one  mile,  pre¬ 
sented  on  thirteen  sheets.  The  contour  interval  is  5  feet  upon  these 
maps. 


44 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


RATING  CURVES. 

For  many  purposes  in  this  report  it  is  of  use  to  know,  at  least 
approximately,  the  rate  of  flow  that  has  prevailed  in  the  river  in  times 
past  at  various  places  and  under  various  gage  heights.  Accurate  flow 
measurements  of  a  large  river  are  difficult  to  make  and  are  expensive. 
It  has  been  observed,  however,  that  at  most  locations  upon  our  streams, 
the  gage  height  bears  a  more  or  less  fixed  relation  to  the  rate  of  flow. 
This  relation  has  been  very  extensively  utilized  in  flow  estimates  of  the 
rivers  of  this  country,  and  has  the  great  advantage,  where  conditions  of 
flow  prism  remain  practically  constant  over  a  considerable  reach  of  the 
river,  that  information  as  to  the  relation  of  gage  height  and  flow  when 
once  secured,  can  be  applied  to  the  gage  records  of  the  stream,  and 
thus  the  flows  can  be  estimated  over  a  long  period  of  time. 

At  any  observation  station  the  relation  of  gage  height  to  flow  is 
approximate  only,  for  the  rate  of  flow  will  change  with  a  change  in  the 
water  surface  slope,  and  this  slope  may  vary  considerably,  especially  in 
flood,  by  reason  of  the  inequalities  in  water  supply  from  the  various 
tributaries  of  the  main  stream. 

Furthermore,  the  results  from  any  gaging  station  will  be  accurate 
in  proportion  to  the  lack  of  influence  from  downstream  interferences 
arising  from  the  causes  other  than  the  rate  of  flow  on  the  stream 
measured.  For  instance,  the  gage  at  Grafton  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Illinois  River,  might  possibly  be  a  good  index  of  flow  for  the  Mississippi 
at  that  place,  but  is  influenced  to  only  a  minor  extent  by  the  water  from 
the  Illinois  River.  Likewise,  the  gages  in  the  lower  Illinois  River  are 
very  largely  influenced  by  the  gage  height  and  flow  on  the  Mississippi, 
but  the  effect  of  the  Mississippi  decreases,  and  the  effect  of  the  flow  on 
the  Illinois  increases  as  the  Illinois  River  is  ascended.  It  is  probable 
that  not  until  Peoria  is  reached  the  height  of  the  Mississippi  has  a 
negligible  effect  upon  the  flow  inference  from  gage  height. 

It  is  customary  to  utilize  the  relation  between  gage  height  and  flow 
at  any  particular  place,  by  platting  a  diagram  of  gage  height  and  flow, 
platting  thereon  each  individual  observation,  and  drawing  a  curve  of 
average  relation  most  nearly  in  accordance  with  the  facts  as  disclosed. 
For  accurate  results  it  is  important  to  have  a  large  number  of  observa¬ 
tions  well  distributed  along  the  curve.  They  will  not  always  be 
concordant  for  the  reasons  above  stated,  but  where  a  sufficient  number 
of  observations  have  been  made,  the  curve  drawn  should  represent  with 
fair  accuracy  the  average  relation  between  gage  height  and  flow.  It  is, 
therefore,  a  good  index  of  aggregate  flow,  especially  over  a  long  period 
of  unchanged  river  conditions,  but  is  much  less  accurate  when  applied 
to  individual  flows.  It  furnishes  the  best  means  available  of  approxi¬ 
mating  the  flows  at  various  times  and  places  upon  the  Illinois  River. 
We  have  examined  all  the  data  of  flow  measurements  of  the  river  that 
we  could  find.  We  have  summarized  this  information  in  the  form  of 
rating  curves  at  several  salient  points  as  shown  upon  Fig.  9,  namely,  at 
La  Salle,  Peoria,  Havana,  Beardstown  and  Pearl.  At  none  of  these 
places,  except  it  be  Peoria  or  Havana,  are  the  flow  measurements  suffi¬ 
ciently  extensive  to  draw  deductions  except  within  certain  limitations. 
The  information  at  these  places,  however,  is  useful  so  far  as  it  goes,  and 


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NOTES : 

©  Booed  on  flow  rreaeurrments 
made  at  Highway  Bridge. 

®  Plow  measuremeds  of  U5.  Erigrs 
and  of  US. 0lS  were  referred 
directly  tot gage  at  P&PliRR 
Bridge  and  by  us  transferred 
to  trie  bower  Wagon  Bridge 


Rating  Curves 


OF 


Illinois  River 

At  Various  locations 


50  60  70  80  90  100 

Per  Second 

Explanation 

o Indicates  measurement 
'ey  US  Engineers  in  1904 

•  Indicates  measurement 
by  U.S.6.S;  in  1903-4-5 & 6. 

•  Indicates  measurement  by 

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To  Accompany  the  Report  oP 

AlvordSc  Burdick 

Engineers  Chicago. 


FIGURE  9. 


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Normal  Relations  ofWater  Elevations 

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AND 

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Illinois  Rives 

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45 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS - DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 

is  therefore  deemed  worthy  of  presentation.  In  the  use  of  these  data,  the 
limitations  of  the  downstream  gages,  particularly  in  reference  to  intei - 
ference  from  downstream,  should  be  kept  in  mind. 

EATING  CUEYE  AT  PEOEIA. 

The  mouth  of  Lake  Peoria  furnishes,  perhaps,  as  good  a  gaging 
station  as  can  be  found  upon  the  river,  the  water  as  it  were,  falling  o\er 
the  lip  of  a  weir  at  Peoria  Lake,  with  a  more  rapid  descent  towards 
Pekin  and  below.  Near  this  place  a  large  number  of  flow  -measurements 
have  been  made,  including  measurements  by  the  U.  S.  Engineers  in 
1904,  in  connection  with  the  waterway  report;  by  the  U.  S.  Geological 
Survey  in  1903,  1904,  1905,  and  1906,  and  also  by  Jacob  A.  Harman, 
C.  E.,  in  1899  and  1900.  Fig.  9  shows  the  measurements  by  these 

separate  agencies,  each  by  appropriate  symbols.  .  , 

The  measurements  by  Mr.  Harman  are  particularly  valuable  m  that 
they  cover  stages  of  water  3  feet  lower  than  any  of  the  more  recent 
measurements.  Fig.  9  shows  two  curves  at  Peoria.  The  long  straight 
line  represents  the  conclusions  of  Mr.  Harman.  His  measurements  were 
made  at  the  lower  wagon  bridge.  The  measurements  of  the  TJ. S.  Geo- 
logical  Survey  and  those  of  the  TJ.  S.  Engineers  were  made  at  the  F.  & 
p.  XJ.  Ey.  Bridge,  about  one  and  one-half  miles  further  downstream.  As 
simultaneous  gage  readings  are  available  at  the  two  bridges,  it  is 
possible  to  transfer  the  measurements  at  the  P.  &  P.  U.  Bridge  to  read  as 
per  heights  at  the  wagon  bridge,  and  as  a  long  gage  record  is  heie 
available,  we  have  thus  transferred  the  P.  &  P.  TJ.  Bridge  measurements 
in  the  rating  curve  presented.  The  full  curved  line  represents  the  con¬ 
clusion  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  and  its  dotted  extension  is  our 
conclusion  as  to  the  flow  at  the  higher  gage  readings. 

The  flow  hydrograph  at  Peoria  shown  at  the  bottom  of  Fig.  4  is 
based  upon  the  Harman  curve  up  to  gage  I1/^,  and  for  higher  stages 
refers  to  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  curve,  as  extended, 
elusion  of  the  II.  S.  Geological  Survey  and  its  dotted  extension  is  our 
conclusion  as  to  the  flow  at  the  higher  gage  readings. 

SUBMEBGED  LANDS. 

For  numerous  purposes  in  this  report  it  is  desirable  to  know  approx¬ 
imately  the  amount  of  land  submerged  under  various  stages  of  the  river. 
It  is  of  significance  in  the  consideration  of  several  matters  including  the 
reduced  river  valley  storage  occasioned  by  the  leveeing  of  farm  lands  and 
the  consequent  tendency  to  increase  flood  flow  rates.  It  is  useful  in 
determining  the  extent'  to  which  reclamation  will  continue  at  various 
localities  in  the  river  valley,  and  it  has  a  bearing  upon  the  fisheries,  for 
the  flood  waters  and  the  flooded  lands  are  important  breeding  and  feeding 
grounds  for  fish. 

In  order  that  reliable  figures  relative  to  this  matter  might  be 
secured,  the  large  scale  topographical  maps  of  the  1904  Engineer  Board 
were  planimetered  at  the  low  water  plane  of  1901  and  at  other  salient 
water  planes  in  general  5  feet  apart,  up  to  or  slightly  above  the  high 
water  plane  of  1844,  the  highest  flood  on  record. 


Acres  Submerged 


46 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

Elevation  Above  Memphis  CKruM-Cort  center  of reach) 


03  > 


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3  6otqe  ort  Beoirdstown 


FIGURE  11. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS - DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


47 


Elevation  Above  Memphis  Datum— (at  center  of  reach) 


1  ‘5  'g  '5  'i  'g  '8  ^  'R  '3  '1  %  'g 


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Correspondinq  sfotoje  on 
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48 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


Elevation  Above  Memphis  Datum— (art  center  of  reach) 


'?  '%  'g  '3  ’g  'f  ‘3  f  '3  '»  'g  '3  t  '2  ^3 


i  Cornespondina  staqe  on 
8  Lof^QocfeoAuyiGnynofe 


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FIGURE  I  3. 


Corre^pondinoj  5iaae  on 
Gaoje  orfBecrcbfiwn 


CRCS  SuBMER 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS 


49 


Elevation  Above  Memphis  Datum- (at  center  of  reach) 


FIGURE  14. 


4  R  L 


acres  Submersed  bv  Illinois  River 
at  Various  Stases 
iNCLuoiNe  Bed  of  River  and  Lake  Beds 


Acres  Submersed 


50 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


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n+he 

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Acres  Submerged  by  Illinois  River 
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FIGURE  13. 


Explanation  of  Diagram 

A  Indicates  flowage  in  natural  river 
valley  before  construction  of 
levees  as  in  1904*  prior  thereto. 

Indicates  flowage  after  (instruction 
D  of  levees  as  existing  &  in  progress 
of  construction  in  1914. 


Acres  Submerged  by  Illinois  River 

LaSalle  to  Mouth 

UNDER 

Normal  Variations  in  River  Stage 

Including  Bed  of  River  and  La*ce  Beds 


76  Accompany  Report  of 

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Engineers  Chicago. 


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FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS — DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


51 


For  convenience  the  minutes  of  latitude  were  used  to  divide  the 
river  into  convenient  sections  below  Peoria.  The  sections  were  nearly 
all  two  minutes  in  width  measured  north  and  south,  extending  across  the 
river  valley,  and  were  thus  about  2%  miles  in  dimension  parallel  to  the 
general  trend  of  the  river  valley.  Curves  of  water  area  were  drawn  for 
each  section  in  reference  to  the  height  of  water  surface  above  Memphis 
datum  plane. 


NORMAL  FLOW  PROFILES. 

For  practical  purposes,  it  was  necessary  to  combine  these  sections 
into  groups  more  or  less  distinctive  of  the  several  reaches  of  the  whole 
stream.  As  the  slope  of  the  water  plane  becomes  of  importance  in  com¬ 
bining  several  of  the  small  sections,  and  further  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
it  is  a  series  of  numerous  sloping  water  planes  that  govern  the  water 
acreage  at  various  gage  heights,  it  was  thought  that  the  information  as 
to  water  acreage  could  be  best  expressed  in  terms  of  the  gage  height 
at  some  salient  place  such  as  Beardstown.  For  this  purpose  Fig.  10 
was  prepared,  which  is  intended  to  represent  the  normal  gage  height 
relation  throughout  the  river  from  La  Salle  to  Grafton,  for  river  stages 
between  the  low  water  of  1901  and  the  high  water  of  1904.  This  was 
done  by  determining  as  nearly  as  possible,  the  average  correlation  of  the 
various  gages  through  platting  a  large  number  of  observations  of  each 
gage  against  the  simultaneous  reading  at  Beardstown. 

The  series  of  profiles  thus  represented,  would  not  be  expected  to 
closely  correspond  to  the  profile  in  any  particular  flood,  for  the  flood  will 
vary  in  height  upon  the  different  reaches  of  the  river  in  accordance  with 
the  varying  contributions  from  the  different  tributaries  of  the  main 
stream.  Upon  the  average,  however,  the  curves  represent  the  composite 
of  the  conditions  constantly  recurring,  and  varying  for  local  reasons 
from  day  to  day  above  and  below  the  water  profiles  represented.  The 
slopes  in  the  river  valley,  particularly  on  account  of  the  dams,  vary  with 
stage,  and  for  a  given  gage  height  at  the  foot  of  a  certain  reach,  the 
acreage  overflowed  will  vary  with  the  slope  of  the  water  surface.  It  was, 
therefore,  deemed  important  to  determine  a  normal  slope  for  each  gage 
height  in  order  that  a  normal  or  average  acreage  could  be  determined. 

CURVES  OF  FLOWAGE. 

Diagrams  of  water  acreage  at  various  river  stages  are  presented  in 
Figs.  11  to  19,  inclusive.  Two  curves  of  acreage  are  shown,  namely — 
first,  (curve  “A”)  the  virgin  river  valley  as  it  existed  before  levee 
operations  were  begun,  or  prior  to  1904,  and  second,  (curve  “B”)  the 
water  acreages  at  present  with  the  levee  districts  as  now  completed  or 
in  process  of  construction. 

The  acreages  for  the  entire  river  from  La  Salle  to  the  mouth  are 
shown  upon  Fig.  19.  At  the  left  of  the  diagram,  the  elevation  of  water 
surface  is  shown  at  Beardstown,  in  reference  to  the  Memphis  datum 
plane,  and  at  the  right  of  the  diagram,  corresponding  heights  upon  the 
Beardstown  gage,  and  also  the  stage  usually  prevailing  at  Grafton  for 
certain  elevations  at  Beardstown.  The  stage  at  Grafton  resulting  from 


52 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


a  given  stage  at  Beardstown,  will  of  course,  vary  widely,  and  the  relation 
indicated  is  no  more  than  an  average  relation.  The  relation  will,  how¬ 
ever,  be  usually  roughly  correct,  for  generally,  rivers  in  the  same  locality 
are  in  greater  or  less  degree  of  flood  at  the  same  season. 

The  diagram  is  read  thus:  During  the  low  water  of  1901  the 
Beardstown  gage  read  just  under  6.75,  corresponding  to  a  Memphis 
datum  elevation  of  434.  The  total  water  acreage  including  the  lakes  and 
ponds  was  77,000  as  indicated  by  curve  "A”.  Under  present  conditions, 
owing  to  construction  of  levee  districts  which  has  cut  off  numerous  lakes 
from  connection  with  the  river  at  a  similar  gage  height,  the  water 
acreage  would  be  68,000,  (curve  “B”)  the  difference  in  the  acreages 
named  representing  the  water  surface  reclaimed.  It  should  be  said  that 
not  all  these  lakes  are  drained,  but  they  are  enclosed  within  levees  which 
make  them  inaccessible  from  the  river,  and  many  of  the  lake  beds  are 
farmed.  With  an  elevation  of  12.75  on  the  Beardstown  gage,  cor¬ 
responding  to  440  feet  Memphis  datum,  the  area  of  the  water  surface 
from  La  Salle  to  Grafton  would  be  225,000  acres  in  the  virgin  river 
valley,  and  152,000  acres  as  now  partially  reclaimed.  Likewise,  it  will 
be  noted  that  at  an  elevation  corresponding  to  the  flood  of  1844,  the 
acreage  in  the  virgin  river  valley  is  398,000,  and  'as  reclaimed,  249,000, 
assuming  that  the  levees  all  extended  above  the  1844  flood  water  plane, 
which  corresponds  to  elevation  22.5  on  the  Beardstown  gauge.  Fig.  11 
shows  similar  information  in  reference  to  that  part  of  the  river  valley 
between  Grafton  and  Kampsville  dam.  The  elevations  at  the  left  of 
the  diagram  refer  to  the  elevation  in  the  center  of  this  reach,  and  at  the 
right  of  the  diagram,  the  corresponding  stage  is  shown  at  Grafton,  the 
nearest  governing  gage,  and  also  the  usually  corresponding  stage  at 
Beardstown. 

Fig.  12  shows  the  same  information  for  the  so-called  Pearl  reach,  so 
named  from  the  principal  town  thereon,  and  extending  from  the  Kamps¬ 
ville  dam  to  mile  52.  (See  mileage  marked  on  Fig.  10.)  In  this  reach 
of  the  river  the  farm  land  has  been  nearly  all  reclaimed.  The  acreage  of 
water  at  the  flood  level  of  1844  in  the  virgin  valley  was  47,200.  A 
repetition  of  this  flood  height  would  produce  an  acreage  of  only  10,700, 
indicating  that  the  flood  water  surface  has  been  reduced  nearly  80  per 
cent  through  the  construction  of  levees.  There  is  a  similar  reduction  at 
all  stages  of  water  though  not  quite  so  great  at  the  low  stages.  This 
reach  is  completely  leveed  and  probably  represents  a  maximum  that  may 
be  used  as  a  guide  for  estimating  the  future  possibilities  on  the  remainder 
of  the  river.  An  examination  of  the  succeeding  diagrams  shows  a  less 
percentage  of  the  land  reclaimed  in  the  upper  parts  of  the  river,  except 
in  the  vicinity  of  Pekin  where  a  little  more  than  half  of  the  bottom  lands 
in  the  so-called  Pekin  reach  has  been  reclaimed.  Declamation  above 
Pekin  has  not  been  extensive  on  account  of  the  relatively  small  width  of 
the  bottom  lands,  and  probably  never  will  be  as  extensive  as  the  operations 
in  the  lower  river. 

Table  No.  10  summarizes  numerically  the  principal  figures  of 
acreage,  and  shows  separately  the  acres  in  river  bed,  lake  beds,  and  the 
land  overflowed,  under  several  stages  of  water.  The  land  acreage  as 
tabulated  is  the  total  water  acreage  after  deducting  river  bed  and  lake 
beds  at  the  plane  of  low  water  in  1901. 


TABLE  NO.  10-WATER  ACREAGES  AND  LAND  OVERFLOWED,  ILLINOIS  RIVER— LA  SALLE  TO  GRAFTON— UNDER  CONDITIONS  BEFORE  AND 

AFTER  CONSTRUCTION  OF  LEVEE  DISTRICTS  AS  EXISTING  OR  UNDER  CONSTRUCTION  IN  1914. 


FLOW  AND  GAGE  HEIGHTS - DAMS - SUBMERGED  LANDS. 


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PART  IV. 


AGRICULTURE  IN  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER  VALLEY. 

Although  the  Illinois  River  was  one  of  the  earliest  highways  of 
commerce,  and  some  of  the  first  cities  of  the  State  were  built  upon  its 
banks,  with  a  few  important  exceptions  these  settlements  have  not 
attained  large  growth.  It  is  only  where  the  railroads  have  crossed  the 
river  that  important  municipalities  have  grown  up.  The  villages  not 
having  railroad  connections  have  remained  in  population  practically 
where  they  were  at  the  time  the  western  railroads  were  first  built.  For 
the  most  part,  these  cities,  and  indeed  the  villages,  are  well  above  the 
high  water  mark.  The  exceptions  are  the  immediate  water  fronts  of 
several  cities,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  the  city  of  Beardstown, 
which  is  located  upon  a  knoll  adjoining  the  river  bank,  which  becomes 
an  island  in  case  of  extreme  flood.  The  exceptional  floods  invade  the 
business  districts  of  the  city,  covering  the  streets  to  a  shallow  depth. 
Therefore,  so  far  as  the  cities  are  concerned,  and  the  industries  therein, 
the  matters  considered  in  this  report  are  of  relatively  small  moment.  The 
river,  its  flow,  its  floods  and  its  stages  are  of  principal  concern  to  the 
industries  of  farming  and  fishing.  The  relative  importance  of  these  two 
industries  has  an  important  bearing  upon  the  control  of  river  improve¬ 
ments.  In  the  following  pages  we  will  endeavor  to  show  the  present 
status  of  agriculture,  and  in  a  separate  part  of  this  report  will  consider 
the  matter  of  the  fisheries. 

GROWTH  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

Agriculture  in  the  bottom  lands  has  been  of  comparatively  recent 
development.  Mr.  Lyman  E.  Cooley,  C.  E.,  who  has  given  much  study 
to  the  river,  describes  it  as  follows : 

“The  character  of  these  bottoms  was  described  in  the  first  official  examina¬ 
tion  by  Capt.  Howard  Stansbury  in  1838.  He  describes  the  valley  as  from 
1  to  5  miles  wide,  deeply  overflowed  in  every  freshet,  filled  with  bayous, 
ponds  and  swamps,  and  infested  with  wild  beasts;  clothed  with  dense  vegeta¬ 
tion,  and  said  it  was  ‘a  forbidden  wilderness  ever  incapable  of  inhabitation 
by  man.’  General  Wilson  in  1867  gives  bis  own  description  and  quotes 
Stansbury,  and  be  says,  ‘It  may  be  true  in  part,  but  already  cultivation  has 
begun  to  encroach  upon  the  higher  bottom  lands.’  General  Marshall  in  1890 
also  described  the  bottom  lands,  their  character,  and  says  that  ‘cultivation 
has  extended  over  the  higher  bottoms;  in  fact,  it  extends  everywhere  they 
can  get  in  seed  before  the  floods  begin.’  He  says,  ‘At  about  the  12-foot 
stage,  the  sloughs,  ponds,  the  lakes  and  the  lower  part  of  the  bottoms  are 
filled;  at  a  16-foot  stage,  80  per  cent  of  all  the  lands  that  are  ever  flooded, 
are  already  covered.’  ” 

The  bottom  lands  on  the  lower  reaches  of  the  river  are  higher  than 
those  further  north,  and  were  cultivated  earlier,  but  until  the  construc¬ 
tion  of  levees  was  begun,  the  cultivation  was  largely  confined  to  the 

54 


AGRICULTURE. 


-JO 


higher  ground  covered  with  water  for  only  a  short  time,  or  in  some 
years  not  at  all. 

Although  a  few  levees  were  built  at  an  earlier  date,  the  construction 
of  levee  districts  as  now  existing,  began  only  shortly  prior  to  1900.  In 
1904,  at  the  time  of  the  survey  of  the  U.  S.  Engineers,  less  than  half 
a  dozen  districts  had  been  built.  These  being  widely  scattered,  and 
most  of  them  of  small  size,  the  interference  to  flood  flow  was  not 
material.  At  the  present  time  more  than  40  per  cent  of  the  river  valley 
has  been  reclaimed,  and  most  of  this  work  has  been  done  since  1908. 

LEVEES. 

With  but  few  local  exceptions,  the  river  follows  the  foot  of  the 
hills  forming  the  west  bank,  the  low  bottoms  lying  to  the  eastward  of  the 
stream.  The  eastern  bank  is  higher  than  the  general  level  of  the  bottoms 
on  account  of  the  quick  deposit  of  the  sediment  carried  by  the  main 
stream  in  flood,  as  the  rising  waters  pass  landward.  This  provision  of 
nature  has  been  utilized  to  protect  the  farm  lands  from  inundation  by 


FIGURE  20. 

A  New  Levee  Showing  Extreme  Irregularity  of  Much  of  the  Dipper  Work. 


levees  which  border  the  low  water  edge  of  the  stream  300  or  400  feet 
landward  therefrom,  and  usually  following  the  stream  until  an  important 
tributary  is  reached,  thence  following  the  bank  of  the  tributary  to  the 
eastern  highlands.  At  some  places  where  the  thread  of  the  river  is  in 
transit  between  the  eastern  and  western  highlands  of  the  valley,  levee 
districts  have  thus  been  formed  on  both  sides  of  the  main  stream,  but 
the  greater  number  of  districts  lie  to  the  east  thereof. 

The  practice  is  common  to  construct  these  levees  by  dipper  dredging, 
a  floating  dredge  being  used  riding  in  a  wet  borrow  pit  or  moat  from 
which  the  excavated  material  is  cast  upon  the  bank  forming  a  rather 
rough  and  irregular  levee,  and  shown  in  the  accompanying  cuts,  Figs. 


56 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


20  and  23A.  It  is  common  practice  to  use  a  borrow  pit  about  60  feet  in 
width  with  a  10-foot  berm  between  the  borrow  pit  and  the  toe  of  the 
levee.  The  levees  usually  have  a  theoretical  top  width  of  about  6  to  8 
feet,  and  combined  side  slopes  of  from  4^*>  to  5  on  one.  It  is  the  prac¬ 
tice  to  place  the  borrow  pits  on  the  river  side  of  the  levee  and  to  leave  a 
space  of  .200  feet  more  or  less  between  the- borrow  pit  and  the  low  water 
river  bank.  The  trees  and  brush  upon  this  space  are  left  in  place  to 
serve  as  a  "wave  break”  for  the  protection  of  the  levee. 

A  few  of  the  smaller  districts  have  no  pumping  facilities,  but  the 
great  majority  of  the  acreage  is  drained  by  pumps  which  operate  at 
such  seasons  of  the  year  as  the  river  may  be  above  the  desirable  water 
plane  in  the  district.  Many  of  the  sloughs,  ponds  and  lakes  are  drained 
and  farmed,  but  a  portion  of  the  lowest  of  these  depressions  is  com¬ 
monly  used  for  the  storage  of  excessive  rainfall. 

% 

GROWTH  OF  LEVEE  DISTRICTS. 

Fig.  21  is  a  scale  drawing  of  the  river  valley  and  serves  to  picture 
the  growth  of  the  levee  districts  and  the  extent  to  which  they  have 
encroached  upon  the  flood  water  plain  of  the  river.  Separate  diagrams 
are  shown  illustrating  the  conditions  in  1904,  practically  at  the  beginning 


FIGURE  21  A. 

Within  the  Levees.  A  Newly  Reclaimed  District. 

of  levee  construction,  and  the  year  of  one  of  the  greatest  floods  that  has 
occurred  upon  the  river.  The  black  area  indicates  the  extent  of  water 
surface  in  flood.  Up  to  1908  a  few  additional  districts  had  been  built. 
The  third  plat  indicates  the  conditions  in  1913,  at  which  time  another 
greater  flood  occurred,  caused  bv  the  edge  of  the  storm  which  did  such 
tremendous  damage  in  Ohio.  The  fourth  diagram  represents  the  condi- 


fOfi  H  iouJI  6T  roaiaoS  abha  omond 


•  JU-i 


3_Qg)  Hi  JSHHAHO  QOOJl  TO  HOTTDIfTrafl 


AGRICULTURE. 


5? 

tions  during  the  summer  of  1914,  with  districts  under  construction  com¬ 
pleted.  The  last  diagram  shows  the  conditions  as  they  may  exist  in  the 
comparatively  near  future  when  all  the  districts  now  projected  are 
completed. 

It  will  be  observed  that  in  the  lower  one-quarter  of  the  river  valley 
the  flood  plain  width  has  been  reduced  nearly  80  per  cent. 

EFFECT  UPON  FLOODS  AND  FISHERIES. 

It  need  hardly  be  stated  that  the  restriction  in  the  flood  plain 
through  the  construction  of  levees  must  tend  to  produce  greater  flood 
heights  under  like  flood  flows.  The  reclamation  of  this  land,  and  par¬ 
ticularly  the  lakes,  has  been  detrimental  also  to  the  breeding  and  taking 
of  fish,  an  important  industry  upon  this  stream. 

The  extent  of  the  effect  upon  floods  and  the  detriment  to  the  fish¬ 
eries  will  be  hereinafter  discussed.  Our  purpose  in  this  section  of  the 
report  is  to  show  to  what  degree  the  agricultural  industry  is  important 
as  having  a  bearing  upon  remedies  that  may  be  applied  to  the  control  of 
the  river. 


INSPECTION  OF  DISTRICTS. 

Although  at  present  the  State  law  requires  a  permit  for  the  con¬ 
struction  of  levees  and  other  structures  upon  public  waters,  and  the 
most  recently  constructed  districts  have  filed  plans  with  the  Rivers  and 
Lakes  Commission,  the  record  of  the  operations  within  the  valley  was 
by  no  means  complete,  and  to  secure  the  data  needed  to  determine  the 
effects  upon  the  levees,  stream  flows  and  other  matters, ‘and  to  determine 
approximately  the  commercial  importance  of  agriculture  within  this 
valley,  a  careful  investigation  was  found  to  be  necessary. 

This  examination  included  a  three  days5  inspection  of  the  stream 
from  La  Salle  to  Grafton,  made  by  the  undersigned  in  company  with 
the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  and  the  Fish  and  Game  Commission. 
Following  this  inspection,  our  representative  examined  nearly  all  the 
levee  districts  in  person,  first  visiting  all  the  county  seats  where  the 
records  of  levee  operation  were  on  file,  obtaining  information  on  file  at 
the  court  houses,  calling  upon  many  district  commissioners,  bankers  and 
business  men,  and  interviewing  engineers  who  had  designed  or  worked 
upon  the  levee  districts.  Having  completed  this  examination  and  having 
completed  a  list  of  the  districts  constructed  and  in  progress  of  construc¬ 
tion,  he  returned  to  Peoria,  and  by  motor  boat  again  passed  down  the 
river,  stopping  at  each  pumping  plant  along  the  way  for  the  purpose  of 
noting  pumping  equipment  and  supplementing  information  regarding 
the  levee  districts,  where  lacking. 

The  data  obtained  from  the  county  clerk’s  office  usually  included 
the  boundary  of  the  district  as  described  in  the  court  decree  organizing 
the  district,  alterations  of  district  made  by  subsequent  decrees,  acres 
assessed  in  the  assessment  roll,  the  area  of  each  district  if  given,  although 
this  was  usually  not  on  record,  the  most  recent  annual  assessments,  the 
total  of  special  assessments  since  the  organization  of  the  district,  the 
amounts  paid  out  for  original  construction,  and  the  names  of  the  com¬ 
missioners  and  engineers.  The  condition  of  the  records  differed  mate- 


58 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


rially  in  different  counties.  Most  of  the  counties  have  special  drainage 
record  books  in  which  matters  pertaining  thereto  are  segregated.  In 
some  counties  the  records  are  in  the  miscellaneous  records;  some  of  the 
records  are  apparently  incomplete. 

PRINCIPAL  DATA  OF  LEVEE  DISTRICTS. 

Table  No.  11  herewith  summarizes  the  principal  data  concerning 
all  the  levee  districts  of  record,  all  the  private  districts  that  could  be 
located,  and  so  far  as  we  could  ascertain  by  inquiry  locally,  and  from 
the  engineers  interested  in  such  matters,  the  projected  districts. 

For  convenience,  the  districts  are  designated  by  name  and  referred 
to  by  number  on  Fig.  22  which  indicates  location.  In  general,  the  num¬ 
bers  are  consecutive  from  the  mouth  of  the  river  upstream. 

A  large  number  of  the  figures  on  acreage  within  the  several  districts 
were  obtained  from  the  engineers.  A  few  values  were  found  on  maps 
or  reports  on  record,  and  some  were  obtained  by  planimeter  from  maps 
of  the  districts  or  from  maps  of  the  Illinois  River  valley.  Areas  de¬ 
termined  by  planimeter  are  so  indicated  on  the  summary  sheet. 

So  far  as  possible,  the  areas  under  cultivation  in  each  district  were 
estimated.  This  was  not  possible  in  the  case  of  all  districts.  The  totals 
at  the  bottom  of  the  page,  Table  11,  assume  that  the  districts  upon  which 
no  figures  were  obtained  vary  as  the  average  of  the  districts1  where  esti¬ 
mates  were  practicable.  Apparently  about  two-thirds  of  the  acreage  is 
now  in  cultivation,  and  about  90  per  cent  is  susceptible  to  agriculture. 
The  waste  land  for  the  most  part  is  in  the  beds  of  deep  lakes  or  occupied 
by  the  ditches  and  structures  necessary  for  drainage  and  the  utilization 
of  the  land. 

Areas  in  cultivation  and  acres  cultivatable,  we  obtained  by  talking 
with  persons  familiar  with  the  ground  and  comparing  the  same  with  the 
assessed  area  which  would  usually  be  equivalent  to  the  useful  land. 

INHABITATION. 

The  number  of  dwellings  and  inhabitants  within  each  district  was 
obtained  from  people  familiar  with  the  area.  For  districts  with  less 
than  ten  dwellings,  the  reports  are  probably  fairly  accurate,  but  for 
districts  of  greater  population,  many  of  the  answers  received  were  evid¬ 
ently  wild  guesses.  The  results  as  a  whole  must  be  considered  as  approxi¬ 
mate. 

DATES  OF  CONSTRUCTION. 

In  studying  the  behavior  of  floods  during  the  last  ten  years,  it  was 
important  to  know  the  extent  of  river  valley  developments,  and  to  this 
end  careful  inquiry  was  made  as  to  the  date  of  beginning  and  completing 
each  levee.  These  dates  were  usually  obtained  from  the  engineers  in 
charge,  or  from  thei  commissioners  of  the  district.  In  nearly  all  in¬ 
stances  the  dates  were  certain,  and  are  probably  as  accurate  as  indicated 
by  the  figures  in  the  tabulation. 

High  water  elevations  as  shown  in  the  table  are  taken  from  all 

available  gage  readings  on  the  river  with  interpolations  between  gages. 


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TABLE  NO.  11— PRINCIPAL  DATA  OF  AGRICULTURAL  LEVEE  DISTRICTS  IN  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER  VALLEY. 


Acres  in  district. 

Levees  built. 

Elevations — Memphis  datum. 

No.  N  ame  of  district. 

County. 

Miles 

above 

Graf¬ 

ton. 

Inculti¬ 

vation, 

1914, 

ap¬ 

proxi¬ 

mate 

Culti¬ 

vable. 

Total. 

Houses 

in 

district. 

Popu¬ 

lation 

of 

dis¬ 

trict. 

Date 

begun. 

Date 

com¬ 

pleted. 

Dis¬ 

trict 

com¬ 

pleted. 

High 

water 

of 

record. 

Top  of 
levee. 

Low 

water 

of 

1901. 

Water 

plane 

main¬ 

tained 

in 

district. 

1  2 

1 

3 

4 

.  1 

0 

6 

7 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

Pumping 
capacity 
— inches 
of  depth 
per  24 
hours. 


Cost  of  district. 


Total. 


Aver¬ 
age  per 
acre. 


Annual 
assess¬ 
ment 
per  acre 
assessed. 


Total 

assessed 

val¬ 

uation. 


Estimated  full  value. 


Total. 


Per  acre. 


17 


18 


19 


Remarks. 


20 


DISTRICTS  COMPLETED  OB  UNDER 
CONSTRUCTION. 

1  Private— near  Rosedale . 

2  Nutwood . . 

3  Private— near  S pankey . 

4  Eldred . T7T77.. . 

5  Private — near  Eldred . 

6  Reach . 

7  Hartwell . . 


5  Hill  view . 

9  Big  Swan . 

10  Scott  County. . . 
11 , 0  akes — private . 
12  Matrvaise  Terre. 


14  McGee  Creek . 

15  Kerr — private . 

16  Meredosia Lake . 

17  Valley . 

IS  South  Beardstown . 

19  Crane  Creek . 

20  Coal  Creek . 

21  Clear  Lake  Special . 

22  Lynchburg  and  Sangamon  B  ottoms 

23  Hamm — private . 

24  Big  Lake . 

27  Otter  Creek . 

28  Langellkr— private . ! ! . . " 

29  Lacey . " 

Spoon  River . 

31  Shulte— private . 

22  Thompson  Lake . 

25  Spring  Lake . '"**'.’* 

35  Banner  Special . 

37  Cummings — private . 

38  Pekin  and  LaMarsh . 

40  East  Peoria . 

42  Partridge . 

46  Hennepin. . V. ".'.W. 


Jersey. . 
..do... 
Greene. 
..do... 
..do... 
..do... 
..do... 


Greene-Scott. 

Scott . 

do . 

do . 

do . 


Totals. 


Pike-Brown . 

Brown . 

Morgan-Cass . 

Cass . 

..do . 

Schuyler . 

Schuyler . 

Cass . 

Mason . 

Schuyler . 

do . 

Fulton . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

Tazewell . 

Fulton-Peoria . 

Tazewell . 

Peoria . 

Tazewell . 

W  oodford-M  arshall 
Putnam . 


PROPOSED  DISTRICTS. 

13  Anderson  Lake . 

25  Weet  Point . 

2 ti  West  Matanzas . 

32  Mod  Lake _ _ 

34  Dock  Island. 


Pike... 

Fulton. 

..do... 

Mason. 


-  — — . .  uiwjn 

®  Feoria. . Peoria 


Fulton . 


41  Sooth  Partridge.. 

C  N  CnlilieotLe . 

44  bparlanl . 

4-  Laze  »en»th wine. 


Woodford. 
Peoria. . . . 
Marshall.. 
Bureau... 


11 

16 

24 

24 

32 

33 
39 

44 

50 

57 

64 

65 

68 

78 

73 

81 

80 

84 

85 
100 
100 
101 
103 
112 
117 

119 

120 
120 
122 
135 
139 

150 

151 
161 
180 
203 


62 

110 

112 

130 

130 

156 


178 

183 

190 

203 


5,000 

6,566 


7,000 

11,000 
10,500 
8,000 
400 
1, 800 

8,000 


1,400 
4, 800 
6,200 


1,500 
3,400 
1,900 
2, 850 


80 


8,000 

750 

100 

2,200 

700 

60 

1,000 


113, 000 


10, 500 
"8,'706 


8,900 

12,000 
12,000 
9, 500 
400 
1,800 

11,000 


7,300 

5,000 

6,400 


3,200 
3, 600 
2,000 
2,900 


12,000 
3,  750 
900 
2,200 
700 
300 
2,500 


*157,  000 


f285 
11,000 
f970 
9,500 
f2, 000 
9,000 

9. 500 

12,400 

12.400 

10,000 

f400 

1,830 

11,300 

f390 

f4,300 

3. 100 

8. 100 

5. 100 
6, 700 

3. 100 

2, 200 

tl,  100 

3. 500 
3,850 
2, 150 
3,000 

fl,  700 

tioo 

f4, 300 
13, 600 
4,600 
fl,  100 

2.400 
750 

3,000 

3,000 


171,  725 


5,000 
2,300 
3,000 
4,700 
12,000 
3, 100 


3,  200 
1,450 
2, 500 
12,000 


49, 250 


40 


50 


26 

42 

75 

1 


25 


22 


4 

20 

11 

11 


35 

10 

1 

6 


350 


1907 

‘idio 


250 


130 

225 

500 

6 


125 


200 


20 

100 

60 

55 


200 

60 

4 

25 


1906 

1906 

1904 

1912 


1914 

1906 

1913 

1904 


1910 


1912 


1910 

’1913 


1910 

1909 

1906 

1914 


1914 

1908 

1897 


1913 

1912 

1901 

1898 

1900 


1904 

1913 

1913 

1890 


1907 

1909 


t 

1909 

+ 

1906 


t 

1911 

1898 


1914 

t 

1914 

1906 

1906 


1910 

t 

t 


19ll 


1909 

t 

1914 


t 

1910 

J 


1911 

1898 


t 

1914 

1906 

1906 


1910 

t 

t: 


t 

1914 


444 

444.5 

445 

445 

445.5 

445.5 

446 

446.2 

446.6 

447 
447.5 

447.5 

447.8 

448.5 

448 

449 

448.8 

449.4 

449.5 

451.5 

451.5 

451. 7 
452 

453.2 

453.8 

454.2 

454.3 
454.3 

454.6 

456.5 

457.5 
460 
460.2 

462.7 
460.2 
462 


21 


22 


23 


24 


447.2 
453 

453.2 
455.7 
461.5 

460.2 


460.2 

460.5 

460.7 

462.0 


443.2 

444.5 

"445."  7 

444.6 

446 

450 

448.5 

445 

445 

450 


450.2 

456 

454 

452 

454.7 

’454" 

■454" 

454.7 

454 

455 


455. 

459 

460 
458 
462 

461 
466 


414.6 
415.5 
417.0 
417.0 

424.4 

424.5 

424.8 

425.1 

425.4 

425.8 
426.3 

426.5 

426.9 

433.7 

427.6 

433.7 
433.7 
433.7 
433.7 
434.5 

434.5 

434.6 

434.7 

435.2 

435.5 

435.6 
435.6 
435.6 

435.9 
437.0 

439.8 

440.5 

440.6 
441.1 

441.6 
444.  7 


419-423 


416 


426.0 

435.0 

435.2 

436.6 

436.6 

440.8 


441.5 

441.7 

441.7 

444.7 


0.25 


0.30 


415.5 


422 

422 


426 


433 

432 


429 


433 


426 

434 

430 

432 


429-433 


435-440 


0.50 
0.  27 

0.  265 
0.27 
0.32 
0.20 


0.38 
6."  33 


0.29 

0.47 


0.20 


0.37 
0.40 
0.50 
0. 50 


$357,000 


250,000 

"250,"  666 

400,000 
327,000 
218, 000 


20,000 

240,000 

"i25,"66o 


110,000 

200,000 

50,000 

33,000 


$32.40 


26.30 


26.30 

32.00 
26.35 
21. 80 


11.00 
21. 20 


29.10 


21. 60 
29. 80 
16.15 
15.00 


0.28 


0.39 

0.50 


0.39 


Av.  0.36 


150,000 
120, 000 
100,000 
160,000 


470,000 

180,000 


128,000 

45,500 

130,000 

169,000 


*$5, 350, 000 


37.50 
32.00 

46.50 
54.00 


34.50 

39.20 


53.30 
60. 60 

43.30 

56.30 


Av.  $30. 57 


$0.55 


.60 


1.00 

1.00 

1.00 


.60 

.30 


.60 


1.00 

1.00 


.85 

.90 


$60,400 


25, 700 


51. 500 
62,680 

90, 786 
17,200 
24,000 
4,900 

24. 500 

64,000 


41,200 
12, 850 
10, 764 
37,800 
58,000 
17,600 


24,300 

42. 400 
14,350 

17.400 


1.00 


1.00 

3.55 


1.00 


91,000 

23,500 


24,000 

20,200 


5, 300 


*$935, 000 


$  28,500 

1, 100, 000 
97,  000 
1, 190, 000 
250,000 
1,400,000 
712,000 

1,550,000 
1,550,000 
1, 000,000 
40,000 
183,000 

1,410,000 
39,000 
537,000 
233,000 
284,000 
765, 000 
1, 000,000 
310,000 
220,000 
140,000 
440,000 
480,000 
320,000 
450,000 
212, 500 
12,500 
215,000 
1,625,000 
322, 000 
110,000 
420,000 
150, 000 
90,000 
225,000 


$100 

100 

100 

125 

125 

140 

75 

125 

125 

100 

100 

100 

125 

100 

125 

75 

35 

150 

150 

100 

100 

125 

125 

125 

150 

150 

125 

125 

50 

125 

70 

100 

175 

200 

30 

75 


$19, 120,500 


$300,000 

138,000 

150,000 

70,000 

240,000 

220,000 


48,000 
21, 750 
37,500 
240,000 


$1,465,250 


Av.  $112 


$60 

60 

50 

15 

20 

70 


15 

15 

15 

20 


Old  levee  designed  to  be  at  el.  445.  Rebuilt  19 14  to  el.  44 ;  2. 


3,000  acres  additional  drainage  area— pumrs  not  va: 

stalled— contracts  let. 

5,600  acres  additional  drainage  area. 

Bottom  of  suction  at  el.  416. 

Overflows  railroad  at  445. 

Pumps  not  yet  installed.  Railroad  overflowed  at  415- 
other  levees  at  448.5. 

Cost  includes  $60,000  for  1914  improvements. 

Pumps  not  yet  installed. 

Pumps  not  yet  installed. 

Levee  started.  Pumps  not  yet  installed 
800  aeres  additional  drainage  area. 

773  acres  additional  drainage  area- 
No  pumping  plant- 


Unorganized- 

Organization  incomplete— some  work  done. 

Pumps  not  yet  installed. 

Pumps  not  yet  installed. 

S00  acres  additional  drainage  area- 

District  flooded  March,  1912— has  not  been  repairei 


Av.  $30 


District  organized  but  no  work  done- 


Note.— Areas  for  proposed  districts  have  been  ie:er- 
nrined  from  map  bv  selecting  area  which  would  proba¬ 
bly  be  included.  In  most  cases  the  boundaries  have 
not  vet  been  fixed. 


•j  dlirtifU  refer  to  map.  t  Area  obtained  by  plainmeter.  *  Estimated.  X  Incomplete. 


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List  of  Levee  Districts 

1  „  \*7  \  /—.  1 1 Mi  k-1  l  nl'a. 


Private 
Nutwood 
Private 
Efktred 
Private 

Keachor  Fairbanks 
Hartwell 
Hillview 
Big  Swan 
Scott  County 
H&CCkakes-Privafe 
Mauvaisterre 
Anderson  Lake-RppoK 
M-Gee  Creek 
Kerr -Private 
Meredosia  Lake 


Valley 
South  Beardsfawn 
Crane  Creek 
Coal  Creek 
♦Clear  Lake 
!  *LynchbunjSSjngamonJ  i 
Hamm-  Private 
Big  Lake 
V\H  Fbint-Propoeed 
W.  Matanzas-Fkopcsed 
Otter  Creek 
Langellier 
Lacey 
SpconRi'verUnorganiffl:  A 
ShuHe-  Private 
Thompson  Lake 


Mud  Lake- Proposed 
Duck  Island- Proposed 
Spring  Lake 
Banner 

Cummings-  Private 

Pekin  &.  La  Marsh 

Peoria  -  Proposed 

East  Peoria 

Proposed 

Partridge 

Proposed 

Proposed 

Proposed 

Hennepin 


A  Map  shows  portion  of  district  protected  by  levee, 


cU  </ 


A 

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/ 


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.  Peru 
LaSaue 


vOttawa 
-Tat 


*/ 


Map  of 

Illinois  River  Bottom^ 

■pHawind 

Levee  Di^trict^ 

m  • 

To  Accompany  the  Report  of 

,  Alvord  8c  Burdick 
Engineers  Chicago. 


im  MAR8EILLE8/X 


SENECA 


»M0RRlS 


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C$T,. 

-1 


C 


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illll'll 


i,  % 


10  15 


Scale  of  Miles 


Elevations  above  Memphis  Datum 


FIGUB.E  H 


Elevations  above  Memphis  Datum 


AGRICULTURE. 


59 


LEVEE  CRESTS. 

The  elevations  of  the  levee  tops  were  obtained  from  the  engineers 
for  the  districts  in  the  great  majority  of  cases.  In  a  few  cases  this  in¬ 
formation  could  not  be  secured.  We  were  advised  that  in  some  districts 
the  levees  had  settled  and  washed  so  that  the  effective  height  is  less  than 
the  standard  profile.  It  is  said  that  there  are  instances  where,  owing  to 
lack  of  inspection,  the  construction  did  not  follow  the  plan  at  all  places. 
It  has  been  the  usual  custom  to  fix  the  standard  profile  for  the  levee  top 
on  a  line  paraded  to  the  river,  horizontal,  that  is,  without  allowing  for 
the  fall  of  the  stream.  As  much  of  the  work  was  done  by  dipper  dredges, 
the  profile  was  usually  not  accurately  followed,  but  an  effort  was  made  to 
place  sufficient  excess  material  to  allow  for  settlement,  a  reasonable 
amount  of  wash,  and  the  ordinary  inequalities  of  dipper  dredging.  In 
some  of  the  districts  the  tops  of  the  levees  were  smoothed  with  a  drag 
after  the  materials  had  settled  and  weathered. 

SECOND  INVESTIGATION. 

After  the  examination  above  described,  and  following  a  platting  of 
the  results,  a  comparison  with  flood  profiles  disclosed  the  need  for  fur¬ 
ther  information.  Accordingly,  a  second  trip  was  made  by  launch  from 
Peoria  to  the  lower  end  of  the  levee  system  in  February,  1915,  at  which 
time  the  river  was  in  moderate  flood  and  it  was  possible  to  land  on  the 
levees  directly  from  the  launch  or  by  means  of  a  rowboat. 

The  investigator  was  equipped  with  a  wye  level.  He  landed  usually 
at  three  places  on  each  levee;  near  the  head,  in  the  middle  and  near  the 
lower  end  of  each  district.  At  each  place  he  recorded  the  elevations  of 
the  letee  tops  for  several  hundred  feet  upstream  and  downstream  from 
the  point  at  which  a  landing  was  made.  The  levels  were  referred  to  the 
water  level  in  the  river  prevailing  at  the  time,  and  were  reduced  to 
Memphis  datum  by  noting  the  stage  of  the  river  as  indicated  by  the 
gages  passed  during  the  trip,  interpolating  between  gages  where  neces¬ 
sary. 

The  result  of  this  examination  is  shown  upon  Fig.  23  on  which  is 
indicated  the  individual  observations  as  to  height,  and  a  profile  of  each 
levee  showing  the  general  average  height  at  various  places  between  the 
head  and  foot  of  same.  The  standard  grade  for  each  district  is  indicated 
on  the  same  drawing  as  reported  by  the  engineers  of  the  districts  or 
others  possessed  of  the  information. 

The  extreme  variation  in  height  noticeable  in  some  of  the  levees  is 
usually  accounted  for  by  some  special  circumstance,  as  the  utilization  of  a 
railway  embankment  often  materially  higher  than  necessary  to  give  the 
standard  grade  of  protection,  or  in  one  or  two  cases,  the  inequalities 
resulting  from  work  in  increasing  the  height  of  the  levees  only  par¬ 
tially  completed. 

We  were  further  advised  that  in  some  of  the  cases  where  the 
height  appears  to  be  much  above  the  standard  grade,  this  condition  is 
accounted  for  by  the  use  of  a  dipper  dredge  in  the  construction  of  the 
levee,  and  the  necessity  for  excavating  sufficient  material  to  float  the 
dredge,  the  excess  excavation  being  thrown  on  the  top  of  the  embankment. 


GO 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


Most  of  the  extreme  low  points  noted  occurred  at  pumping  stations 
for  short  distances,  the  levees  being  left  at  low  grade  probably  for  con¬ 
venience  in  handling  fuel  from  barges,  doubtless  with  the  thought  that 
the  height  could  be  quickly  increased  in  case  of  need.  A  number  of 
other  low  points  are  occasioned  by  road  crossings  where  the  standard 
was  not  maintained  for  similar  reasons. 

Although  a  slight  error  is  introduced  by  referring  these  levees  to 
Memphis  datum  by  comparison  with  water  levels,  the  extreme  irregu¬ 
larity  in  these  levee  profiles  would  hardly  seem  to  have  warranted  the 
connection  of  each  levee  to  a  standard  benchmark.  To  have  done  so 
would  have  been  impossible  with  the  means  available  for  this  report. 


FIGURE  2  3 A. 

A  Typical  Pumping  Station.  Note,  also,  the  Irregular  Dipper  Dredge  Levee. 

PUMP  CAPACITY. 

Pumping  capacities  where  possible,  were  secured  from  the  design¬ 
ing  engineers.  In  some  cases  it  was  necessary  to  compute  the  capacity 
from  the  sizes  of  the  pumps,  and  where  this  was  necessary,  it  was  done 
on  the  assumption  of  a  discharge  velocity  of  10  feet  per  second. 

COST  OF  DISTRICTS. 

The  figures  as  to  cost  were  obtained  from  the  special  assessment 
record  and  the  amounts  paid  out  as  on  record,  checked  by  consultation 
with  commissioners  and  interested  parties,  to  determine  whether  all 
assessments  levied  had  been  found,  whether  funds  had  been  privately 
subscribed  before  any  assessment  was  made,  and  whether  amounts  had 
been  assessed  but  not  used.  On  the  whole,  the  costs  are  thought  to  be 
fairly  accurate.  For  private  districts,  costs  were  hard  to  obtain  as  they 
are  not  on  record.  Some  low  values  shown  are  for  incomplete  dis¬ 
tricts,  particularly  those  not  equipped  with  pumps. 


AGRICULTURE. 


61 


ASSESSED  VALUATION. 

The  assessed  valuations  are  based  upon  the  record  for  1913.  How¬ 
ever,  property  is  not  divided  on  the  limits  of  levee  districts  so  that  it 
was  impossible  to  determine  the  exact  assessed  valuation.  The  method 
used  was  to  refer  to  a  map  showing  the  boundaries  of  the  district  taken 
from  the  assessor's  record  or  from  the  collector's  record,  the  assessed 
value  of  each  piece  of  property  lying  entirely  within  the  district,  and 
to  make  a  fair  division  where  properties  overlap  the  boundary. 

FULL  VALUE  OF  PROPERTY. 

The  full  value  of  land  within  districts  was  estimated  by  talking 
with  landowners,  bankers  and  people  familiar  with  the  areas.  In  gen¬ 
eral,  the  landowners  were  inclined  to  place  a  higher  value  on  the  land 
than  bankers  and  disinterested  parties.  Most  of  the  bottom  land  within 
the  district  is  equivalent  in  productivity  to  the  very  best  Illinois  farm 
land;  but  the  cost  of  pumping  and  maintenance,  the  possibility  of  dam¬ 
age  from  high  water,  and  the  fewer  improvements  due  largely  to  fear  of 
overflow,  are  factors  tending  to  reduce  the  value  of  the  land  below  that 
of  the  less  productive  upland.  The  total  value  of  the  land  in  each  dis¬ 
trict  was  computed  from  the  average  value  per  acre. 

IMPROVEMENTS  AND  CONDITIONS. 

Many  of  the  districts  visited  had  but  few  permanent  improvements. 
The  larger  number  of  districts  are  comparatively  new,  and  many  are 
practically  beginning  their  productive  existence.  For  these  newer  dis¬ 
tricts  the  dwellings  are  principally  temporary  in  character.  Nearly  all 
of  the  districts  have  good  substantial  pumping  stations.  There  are  very 
few  improved  roads.  Where  levees  can  be  used  for  roads,  fairly  good 
highways  exist,  but  in  the  bottoms  considerable  work  is  needed  to  put 
them  in  condition  for  use  at  all  seasons. 

As  would  be  expected,  the  older  districts  have  the  best  improve¬ 
ments,  especially  those  adjacent  to  Beardstown. 

CONDITION  OF  LEVEES. 

One  criticism,  not  applicable  to  all  districts,  is  the  lack  of  attention 
paid  to  the  levees.  The  construction  by  dredge  is  undoubtedly  the  best 
method  to  employ  for '  high  levees,  but  this  leaves  the  levees  with  the 
appearance  of  a  miniature  mountain  range.  The  location  of  much  of 
the  levee  work  makes  it  difficult  to  obtain  thorough  and  continuous 
inspection ;  and  in  one  instance  reported,  the  inequalities  in  the  elevation 
of  the  levee  top  gave  the  district  2  feet  less  protection  than  the  plans 
intended,  or  the  average  material  handled  made  possible.  It  is  probable 
that  similar  conditions  exist  in  other  districts. 

As  a  rule,  the  levees  are  allowed  to  be  covered  with  a  rank  growth 
of  weeds.  On  one  of  the  private  districts  the  owner  proposes  to  fence 
his  levees  and  to  pasture  them.  This  would  keep  the  surfaces  exposed  to 
view  so  that  damage  from  burrowing  animals  or  from  other  causes,  would 
be  readily  noticed  and  the  presence  of  cattle  would  bend  to  drive  away 


62 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


pests.  When  the  danger  from  poorly  kept  and  poorly  inspected  levees  is 
considered,  this  plan  would  seem  to  be  worthy  of  consideration  by  all 
landowners. 

ESTIMATED  PRODU CTI VITY  OF  AGRICULTURAL  LAUDS. 

So  far  as  we  were  able  to  determine,  there  are  no  statistics  from 
which  the  annual  value  of  the  crops  can  be  computed  for  the  Illinois 
River  Valley.  The  most  definite  figures  practicable  are  apparently  based 
upon  the  improved  acreage  and  the  average  yields  so  far  as  they  may  be 
determined.  At  the  time  that  we  examined  the  levee  districts,  an  effort 
was  made  to  secure  as  accurately  as  possible,  the  average  crop  yield  on 
each.  To  this  end,  those  likely  to  be  most  familiar  with  the  local  facts 
were  consulted,  including  farmers,  drainage  commissioners,  engineers, 
and  where  possible  as  a  check,  bankers  in  the  adjacent  towns.  Corn  is 
the  staple  crop  on  the  bottom  lands,  but  wheat  is  also  produced.  Stock 
raising  has  not  yet  become  extensive. 

It  is  believed  that  fairly  accurate  figures  were  obtained  from  about 
one-half  the  levee  districts  in  crop.  Most  of  the  corn  yields  range  from 
40  to  90  bushels  per  acre,  and  the  wheat  yields  20  to  40  bushels.  Those 
best  informed  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  bottom  lands  properly  farmed 
should  yield  50  to  60  bushels  of  corn  per  acre  over  a  period  of  years.  At 
the  present  time,  the  price  of  corn  is  abnormally  high.  The  estimates 
of  yield  that  we  secured  were  based  upon  a  more  normal  price  of  50 
cents  for  corn,  with  other  grains  in  proportion.  The  crop  yields  per 
acre  for  fourteen  districts,  aggregating  61,000  acres  as  estimated  by  the 
best  informed  local  people  ranged  from  $18.00  to  $50.00  per  acre,  the 
latter  figure  covering  a  small  district,  and  averaged  $26.20  per  acre  in 
cultivation.  Some  large  well  improved  tracts  are  said  to  produce  $30.00 
to  $35.00  per  acre,  based  upon  50  cents  for  corn. 

In  1914  the  farmers  received  an  average  price  of  70  cents  for  corn 
and  87  cents  for  wheat.  At  these  prices  large  tracts  yielded  $30.00  to 
$45.00  per  acre. 

At  the  present  time  about  113,000  acres  are  in  cultivation  or  will 
be  ready  for  cultivation  this  year.  At  $27.00  per  acre,  the  annual  yield 
would  be  $3,050,000. 

The  land  subject  to  cultivation  is  estimated  at  157,000  acres.  It  is 
believed  that  within  the  next  few  years  this  land  should  be  improved  so 
as  to  produce  about  $33.00  per  acre  at  average  prices.  This  is  equivalent 

to  $5,200,000  per  annum.  . 

With  all  districts  now  projected,  assuming  that  the  cultivable  land 
will  be  in  about  the  same  proportion  to  the  leveed  area  as  in  the  districts 
now  improved,  the  total  cultivated  area  in  the  valley  would  approximate 
200,000  acres,  which,  if  so  improved  as  to  produce  a  gross  return  of 
$33.00  per  acre,  would  produce  a  gross  yield  of  $6,600,000  per  annum. 

UULEVEED  LAUDS. 

The  acreage  capable  of  crop  without  levees  in  that  portion  of  the 
valley  where  levees  do  not  now  exist,  is  comparatively  small,  bordering 
the  extreme  high  water  line  fairly  closely.  Below  the  La  Grange  dam, 
except  for  the  land  close  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  this  acreage  is  a 


AGRICULTURE. 


63 


narrow  irregular  strip  on  the  slope  of  the  hills.  Above  the  La  Grange 
dam  there  are  178,900  acres  unleveed  below  the  plane  of  the  1844  flood 
(land  and  water)  and  there  are  45,600  acres  lying  above  the  plane 
reached  in  the  flood  season  every  year  since  1900.  There  are  22,700 
acres  flooded  only  one  year  in  three.  There  are  about  35,000  acres  of 
land  which  has  been  free  from  water  by  May  1  since  1900,  two  years 
in  three.  A  large  part  of  this  land  has  not  been  flooded  since  1844. 

By  no  means  all  of  the  land  is  cleared  that  could  be  farmed,  and 
no  estimate  is  practicable  as  to  the  acreage  in  crop.  If  it  is  assumed 
that  the  whole  of  the  35,000  acres  produces  an  average  of  $15.00  per 
acre,  the  yield  of  this  land  would  be  about  $500,000  per  annum. 

SUMMARY  OF  AGRICULTURAL  VALUES. 

To  sum  up,  therefore,  in  round  figures,  about  170,000  acres  or  about 
half  the  bottom  land  acreage  below  La  Salle  has  been  leveed  at  a  cost  of 
$30.00  per  acre,  or  slightly  over  $5,000,000 ;  that  these  lands  today  are 
valued  at  nearly  $20,000,000,  that  they  produce  annually  about  $3,000,- 
000,  and  when  fully  cultivated  should  produce  about  $5,000,000  per  year. 

When  districts  now  projected  are  fully  cultivated,  the  total  yield 
of  the  leveed  lands  of  the  river  should  approximate  over  $6,000,000  per 
annum. 

The  gross  return  from  the  unleveed  lands  above  the  La  Grange  dam 
probably  does  not  exceed  $500,000  per  annum. 


PART  V. 


THE  FISHERY  OF  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

It  is  a  fact  not  generally  known  that  the  fishery  of  the  Illinois  River 
is  the  most  important  river  fishery  of  the  country,  excepting  only  the 
salmon  industry  of  the  Pacific  Coast,  and  this  is  not,  strictly  speaking,  a 
river  fish. 

In  the  last  U.  S.  Census,  which  covered  the  calendar  year  1908,  the 
fish  taken  commerciallv  from  the  Illinois  River  totaled  23,896,000 
pounds,  returning  $721,000  to  the  fishermen,  at  about  three  cents  per 
pound.  The  river  produced  62  per  cent  of  the  fish  taken  in  this  State, 
and  over  10  per  cent  of  the  fresh  water  fish  of  the  United  States. 

The  industry  has  grown  from  about  6,000,000  pounds  taken  in 
1894,  to  the  maximum  of  nearly  24,000,000  pounds  in  1908,  since  which 
time  the  catch  has  declined  very  rapidly.  This  growth  and  decline  is 
attributable  to  a  number  of  causes,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  the 
introduction  of  the  German  carp,  the  increase  in  waters  brought  about 
by  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  the  effect  of  the  accompanying  sewage 
thereof,  and  the  closing  and  reclaiming  of  the  lakes  which  has  taken 
place  very  rapidly  since  1900  through  the  leveeing  of  lands  and  the 
isolation  of  such  waters  by  hunting  and  fishing  clubs.  These  causes, 
some  tending  toward  increase  and  others  toward  decrease,  are  so  inter¬ 
related  and  their  combined  effects  are  so  important  to  the  permanency 
of  the  fish  industry  as  to  warrant  careful  study  to  the  end  that,  so  far 
as  possible,  the  beneficial  conditons  may  be  promoted,  and  the  detri¬ 
mental  conditions  relieved  in  so  far  as  this  is  consistent  with  the  public 
welfare.  It  will  be  our  endeavor  to  throw  such  light  upon  these  matters 
as  is  possible  with  the  existing  data. 

GAME  FISH. 

The  Illinois  River  bottoms  are  today,  and  have  long  been  considered, 
the  best  game  fishing  grounds  of  the  State,  and  also  the  best  hunting 
grounds  for  water  fowl,  and  while  retention  of  these  recreation  grounds 
is  warranted  in  so  far  as  consistent  with  the  development  of  the  country 
and  its  citizens,  the  commercial  importance  of  the  fishery  is  concerned 
with  the  so-called  game  fishes  to  a  relatively  minor  degree,  for  although 
they  bring  the  highest  price,  the  weight  taken  is  relatively  small.  The 
game  fishery,  however,  is  of  great  importance  to  the  sportsmen  of  the 
State,  and  is  an  important  source  of  revenue  to  the  towns  along  the 
river.  Experienced  observers  estimate  that  the  local  communities  receive 
approximately  as  much  money  by  reason  of  the  visiting  fishermen  as  they 
do  from  the  commercial  fisheries. 

FOOD  FISH. 

The  principal  value  of  the  catch  is  in  the  German  carp,  and  until 
recently,  the  buffalo  fish,  neither  of  which  is  extensively  used  at  present 

64 


FISHERIES. 


65 


by  American  born  people,  but  which  furnish  an  important  and  cheap 
food  to  people  principally  of  foreign  birth  in  the  larger  cities.  Most  of 
the  Illinois  Eiver  fish  is  shipped  to  Chicago  and  New  York. 

Taste  in  this  regard  is  doubtless  a  matter  of  education,  for  to  the 
European  who  understands  the  cookery  of  the  carp  and  has  become 
accustomed  to  it  through  generations  of  use,  it  is  regarded  as  a  great 
delicacy  among  all  classes  of  people,  even  the  nobility.  In  Germany  par¬ 
ticularly,  carp  farming  is  well  established  as  an  independent  industry, 
and  has  been  practiced  for  centuries  in  much  the  same  way  that  poultry 
is  handled  upon  the  American  farm. 

As  yet,  the  food  fish  does  not  compel  the  price  commensurate  with 
its  value  as  a  food,  carp  selling  in  the  American  market  at  from  1 % 
to  5  cents  per  pound,  depending  upon  the  season,  and  averaging  about 
3  cents  in  return  to  the  fishermen  as  compared  to  10  to  12  cents  for 
bass  and  pike-perch,  and  about  half  as  much  for  whitefish  and  catfish. 
The  German  wholesale  prices  for  carp  are  about  equivalent  to  the  Ameri¬ 
can  price  for  bass,  or  from  four  to  five  times  the  present  price  of  carp  in 
this  country.  It  will  not  be  sufficient  therefore,  to  measure  the  future 
possibilities  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  as  a  fishery  by  the  present  price  of  its 
product.  The  fish  produced  are  certain  to  become  more  valuable,  and 
particularly  the  so-called  food  fish. 


TABLE  NO.  12— TABLE  SHOWING  TOTAL  FISH  CATCH— ILLINOIS  RIVER— 1894-1908. 


Year. 

Agency  reporting. 

* Pounds 
of  fish. 

Cents 

per 

pound. 

t  Value 
to  fisher¬ 
men. 

1894 . 

United  States  Fish  Commission . 

6, 037, 378 
7, 252, 811 
9, 703,  798 
14,  006,  866 
11,  205, 516 
11,899,  865 
10,779,582 
16, 149,  076 
14,  739,  000 
19,  270,  000 
23, 896,  000 

2.7 

2.85 

2. 88 

$162, 450 
207, 687 
279,482 

1896 . 

Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association . 

1897 . 

Illipois  Fishermen’s  Association . 

1899. . . . 

United  States  Fish  Commission . 

1899. . 

Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association . 

3.  22 
3.  27 

362,  246 
388, 876 

1900 . 

Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association . 

1903 . 

United  States  Commission . 

1906 . 

Illinois  Fish  Commission . 

1907 . 

Illinois  Fish  Commission . . 

1908 . 

Illinois  Fish  Commission . 

1908 . 

United  States  Bureau  of  Fisheries . 

3.  02 

J721, 000 

*  Pounds  includes  fish  only. 

t  Value  includes  turtles  and  miscellaneous  products  which  are  not  weighed;  this  affects  price  per 
pound  as  given,  slightly.  Mussel  shell  products  excluded  in  all  figures. 

J  Computed  by  deducting  shells  and  pearls. 

GEOWTH  IN  PEODUCTION. 

Table  No.  12  shows  the  total  fish  catch,  together  with  the  value 
thereof,  upon  the  Illinois  Eiver  for  such  years  as  statistics  are  available. 
It  includes  the  period  1894  to  1908.  The  table  shows  the  agency  gather¬ 
ing  the  statistics  in  each  year  for  which  figures  are  given.  It  will  be 
noted  that  in  certain  years  as  in  1899  and  1908,  different  agencies 
present  figures  not  entirely  in  agreement.  The  figures  of  the  U.  S. 
Fish  Commission  and  the  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Fisheries  seem  to  be  some¬ 
what  larger  than  the  figures  of  the  Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association  and 
the  Illinois  Fish  Commission  in  the  years  where  comparisons  are  prac¬ 
ticable.  All  these  figures  refer  to  fish  taken  for  sale,  no  account  being 

taken  of  the  very  small  catch  used  by  the  fishermen.  All  the  statistics 
— 5  R  L 


GG 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


are  primarily  based  upon  fish  shipments,  and  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
there  is  more  or  less  shipping  from  the  minor  to  the  major  markets  on 
the  river,  more  or  less  duplication  is  probable  in  all  the  statistics  herein 
given.  It  is  believed  that  the  statistics  of  the  local  Illinois  associations 
probably  represent  the  true  fish  catch  more  nearly  than  statistics  pre¬ 
pared  by  the  U.  S.  agencies. 

Table  No.  13  shows  the  relation  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  yield  to  that 
of  the  State  and  to  the  United  States  for  the  year  1908,  in  accordance 
with  the  figures  of  the  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Fisheries  as  contained  in  the 
Census  of  1910. 


TABLE  NO.  13— GENERAL  STATISTICS  OF  FISHERIES— ILLINOIS  RIVER— STATE  OF 

ILLINOIS  AND  UNITED  STATES. 


United  States  Census  for  vear,  1908. 


Value  of  Fish  and  Mussel  Products 
( to  Fishermen) — 

U nited  States .  $8, 329,  000 

State  of  Illinois  (16  per  cent  of 

total  United  States  catch) .  1, 388,  000 

Illinois  River  (62  per  cent  of  State, 

10  per  cent  of  U nited  States) . . .  860, 000 


Statistics  for  Illinois  River — 

Total  value  of  catch .  $860, 000 

Value  excluding  mussel  products. . .  721, 000 

Persons  employed  (exclusive  of 

shoremen) — 

Proprietors .  1, 504 

Salaried .  6 

Wage  earners .  987 

-  2, 497 

Capital  employed .  $551, 000 


MEN  AND  CAPITAL. 

The  table  also  shows  the  statistics  of  persons  engaged  in  the  fisheries 
together  with  capital  invested  according  to  available  statistics. 

In  1908  more  than  half  the  fishermen  of  the  State  were  on  the 
Illinois  Eiver  (2,500  persons),  and  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  total  capital 
employed  in  fisheries,  ($551,000). 

TABLE  NO.  14— TOTAL  FISH  CATCH— HAVANA  MARKET. 


Year. 


Pounds. 


Per 
cent  of 
total 
catch  on 
river. 


Authority. 


1896. 

1897, 
1899. 
1900 

1907. 

1908. 


1, 573,  298 
1,600, 183 
1,830,291 
1,368,010 
2, 700,  000 
3, 800,  000 


21.7 
16.5 

16.3 

11.4 

18.4 

19.7 


Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association. 
Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association. 
Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association. 
Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association. 
Illinois  Fish  Commission. 

Illinois  Fish  Commission. 


Average 


17.3 


1908  . 

1909  . 

1910  . 

1911  . 

1912  . 

1913  (to  October  31) 


3,  066, 658 
2,  223,  794 
2,  221,930 
1,  803,  724 
1,181,151 
1,293,563 


R.  E.  Richardson. 
R.  E.  Richardson. 
R.  E.  Richardson. 
R.  E.  Richardson. 
R.  E.  Richardson. 
R.  E.  Richardson. 


Note.— 1,593,000  pounds  average  1896  to  1900  inclusive. 

STATISTICS  SINCE  1908. 

There  are  no  figures  covering  the  entire  river  for  the  years  subse¬ 
quent  to  1908.  The  only  figures  that  we  were  able  to  secure  concern  the 
shipments  from  Havana,  one  of  the  most  important  fishing  points  on 
the  river.  Table  No.  14  shows  these  statistics  for  the  years  1908  to 


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Million  Pounds  Pep  Year 


FIGURE  24. 


Note:  Catch  since  1908  based  on  Statistics  for 
Havana  upon  assumption  that  its  percentage 
to  total  for  River  remains  constant,  i.e.  17.3  t, 
which  is  the  average  percentage 
from  1896  to  1908. 


Diagram  Showing 

Growth^  Decline 


OF 

Total  Fish  Catch  on  Illinois  River 


To  accompany  Report  of 

Alvord&l  Burdick 


Engineers  Chicago 


DC  JB? 


Million  Pounds 


FIGURE  25. 


1894 


1897 


1900 


1903 


<909 


Million  Pounds 


FISHERIES. 


67 


1913  inclusive,  as  collected  by  Mr.  E.  E.  Eichardson  of  the  State  Bio¬ 
logical  Station,  Havana.  For  convenience  in  comparison,  the  Havana 
yields  from  the  years  1896  to  1908,  as  reported  by  the  Illinois  Fisher¬ 
men’s  Association  and  the  Illinois  Fish  Commission,  are  stated  in  the 
same  table,  together  with  the  percentage  that  the  Havana  yield  bears 
to  the  total  fish  catch  of  the  river,  as  reported  for  those  years  by  those 
agencies.  From  1896  to  1908  Havana  has  produced  not  less  than  11  per 
cent,  and  not  more  than  22  per  cent  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  yield,  and  has 
averaged  17.3  per  cent. 

DIAGEAM  OF  TOTAL  FISH  YIELD. 

Fig.  24  is  a  diagrammatic  representation  of  the  total  yield  of  fish 
on  the  Illinois  Eiver  from  1894  to  1913.  The  last  five  years  have  been 
based  upon  the  assumption  that  the  shipments  at  Havana  were  equivalent 
to  17.3  per  cent  of  the  total  yield  of  the  river.  This  probably  makes  the 
apparent  total  yield  somewhat  too  large,  as  the  fish  production  at  places 
further  downstream  suffered  to  a  much  greater  degree  during  this  period 
than  have  the  Havana  fisheries. 

This  diagram  serves  to  illustrate  the  gradually  increasing  yield  in 
1894  to  1908  and  its  subsequent  rapid  decline. 

YIELD  OF  VAEIOUS  SPECIES. 

The  reports  of  the  Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association  are  quite  specific 
in  regard  to  the  kind  of  fish  taken.  From  these  data  Fig.  25  has  been 
prepared  which  shows  the  size  of  the  catch  for  the  leading  varieties  for 
the  years  1894,  1897,  1900  and  1903,  with  the  total  catch  for  these 
years,  and  the  same  facts’ from  the  U.  S.  Fishery  statistics  for  the  year 
1908  so  far  as  they  differentiate  as  to  kind.  In  the  last  named  year 
the  figure  for  the  total  and  for  carp  only  are  given.  The  catch  of  buffalo 
fish  has  been  estimated  from  figures  by  Mr.  E.  E.  Eichardson,  showing 
the  relation  between  carp  and  buffalo  for  that  year  at  Havana. 

It  will  be  observed  that  up  to  1908,  the  increase  in  the  yield  of 
the  river  is  largely  accounted  for  by  the  increase  of  the  carp.  The  yield 
of  buffalo  fish,  which  was  formerly  the  principal  food  fish  of  the 
Illinois  Eiver,  gradually  decreased  up  to  1908.  Since  1908  the  buffalo 
fish  has  almost  wholly  disappeared  above  the  lower  dam. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  yield  of  varieties  other  than  buffalo  and 
carp  also  gradually  increased  up  to  1908.  No  later  statistics  are  avail¬ 
able,  but  the  subsequent  yield  is  known  to  have  greatly  decreased,  as 
evidenced  by  the  estimated  totals  in  the  diagram  previously  referred  to. 

FISH  PEICES. 

It  will  be  very  useful  in  correctly  interpreting  the  importance  of  the 
Illinois  Fishery,  and  especially  in  comparing  it  with  foreign  statistics, 
to  present  the  data  on  local  prices  together  with  similar  prices  abroad. 
This  information  serves  to  account  for  the  large  returns  reported  from 
European  fish  farms,  and  they  further  serve  to  show  the  future  pos¬ 
sibilities  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  Valley  in  the  way  of  revenue  produced  by 
the  fisheries. 


68 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


FIGURE  2  5 A. 

Fish  Market  at  Havana. 


Table  Nc.  15  shows  the  average  German  prices  for  carp  from  1891 
to  1905,  both  wholesale  and  retail.  Table  No.  16  shows  the  variations 
in  the  German  price  during  the  months  of  the  year  1909. 


TABLE  NO.  15— YEARLY  AVERAGES  OF  GERMAN  PRICES  FOR  CARP,  IN  CENTS  PER 
POUND,  WHOLESALE  AND  RETAIL,  BERLIN,  1891-1905. 


Year. 

Whole- 
sale — 
alive. 

tVh  ole- 
sale — 
in  ice. 

Retail. 

• 

Year. 

Whole¬ 

sale- 

alive. 

Whole¬ 
sale — 
in  ice. 

Retail. 

1891 . 

16.7 

9.  6 

18.  0 

1900 . 

15.0 

10.4 

18.0 

1892 . 

17.6 

9.8 

19. 1 

1901 . 

15.0 

11.0 

18.7 

1893 . 

15. 1 

9.9 

18.2 

1902 . 

14.4 

10.3 

18.2 

1894 . 

15.  7 

9.9 

18.4 

1903.. 

15.  0 

10.9 

18.4 

1895 . 

16.3 

9.7 

17.9 

1904 . 

15.9 

10.4 

19.0 

1896 . 

15.  0 

10.0 

17.6 

1905 . 

15.  5 

12.3 

19.9 

1RQ7 

1A  R 

10  1 

ie  ^ 

1898 . 

14.  2 

9.9 

18.  2 

Average . 

15.  53 

10.  06 

1899 . 

14.8 

10.7 

18.1 

Live  carp  sells  at  prices  54  per  cent  higher  than  dead. 


TABLE  NO.  16— WHOLESALE  PRICES  FOR  CARP,  BY  MONTHS,  FOR  1909,  AT  THE  FISH 
AUCTIONS  IN  THE  CENTRAL  MARKET  HALL,  BERLIN. 


Month. 

Alive — 
cents  per 
pound. 

Dead— 
cents  per 
pound. 

Month. 

Alive— 
cents  per 
pound. 

Dead — 
cents  per 
pound 

January . 

11.  2 

7.  8 

August . 

16.7 

12.  2 

February. . . . 

11. 1 

•10.5 

September . 

18.5 

11.4 

March. ..... 

12. 1 

12.5 

October . 

16.4 

11.  S 

April . 

17.  9 

11.  1 

November . 

15.4 

11.4 

May . 

23.5 

99  ^ 

11.  4 

December . 

19. 1 

13.6 

12.3 

July . 

•  Average . 

16.7 

11.  5 

Live  carp  average  45  per  cent  more  than  dead. 


FISHERIES. 


69 


Table  No.  17  shows  the  average  price  per  pound  paid  to  the  fisher¬ 
men  of  the  State  of  Illinois  in  the  census  year  1908,  for  fish  of  the 
principal  varieties  caught. 


TABLE  NO.  17— CATCH  VALUE  AND  PRICE  PAID  TO  FISHERMEN. 
Principal  Illinois  fishes— figures  represent  total  for  the  State— United  States  Census,  1908. 


Pounds. 

Dollars. 

Per 

pound— 

cents. 

Pounds. 

Dollars. 

Per 

pound — 
cents. 

Black  bass . 

Sunfish . 

Buffalo . 

German  carp . 

Catfish . 

Crappie . 

Dogfish . 

Sheepshead  (drum) 
Lake  herring . 

530,000 
1, 714, 000 
3, 042, 000 
21, 642, 000 
2, 044, 000 
1, 281,  000 
1,370,000 
666, 000 
598,  000 

$  57, 000 
31,000 
117,  000 
574, 000 
96,000 
35,000 
18,000 
20,000 
28,000 

.107 

.018 

.038 

.026 

.047 

.027 

.013 

.03 

.047 

Paddle-fish . 

Yellow  perch . 

Pike  and  pickerel . 

Pike  perch . 

Sturgeon . 

Suckers . 

Lake  trout . 

Whitefish . 

402, 000 
238,000 
14, 000 
14, 000 
178,  000 
281,  000 
150, 000 
14,  000 

$12, 000 
12,000 
1, 100 

1.500 

6. 500 
6, 400 

13,  000 
800 

.029 

.05 

.078 

.11 

.036 

.023 

.086 

.057 

Table  No.  18  illustrates  the  variation  in  average  wholesale  price  of 
carp  in  Havana,  Ill.,  and  New  York,  with  the  retail  price  in  New  York 
for  the  calendar  months  of  1914. 


TABLE  NO.  18— WHOLESALE  AND  RETAIL  PRICES  FOR  CARP,  HAVANA  AND  NEW 

YORK,  RECENT  YEARS  (1908-1903) 

Data  furnished  by  John  Dixon,  principal  fish  dealer,  Peoria,  January,  1914. 


Month. 

Paid  to 
fisher¬ 
men, 
Havana. 

Received 

by 

Havana 
shippers, 
on  car  lots 
to  New 
York. 

Price, 
retail  to 
consumer. 
New 
York. 

Month. 

Paid  to 
fisher¬ 
men, 
Havana. 

Received 

by 

Havana 
shippers, 
on  car  lots 
to  New 
York. 

Price, 
retail  to 
consumer. 
New 
York. 

January . 

February . 

March . 

April . 

May . 

June . 

Cents. 

4  -5 

5 

3 

1J-3 

1  -li 
1  -1* 

Cents. 

5J-6 

7  -8 
4i 
3  -4§ 
2£-3 
2£-3 

Cents. 

15  up 
20  up 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 

July . 

August . 

September . 

October . 

November . 

December . 

Cents. 

1  -2£ 
l*-3 

2  -3* 
l*-3 
2*-3 

3  $-5 

Cents. 

2*-4 

3  -4* 
3J-5 

3  -4* 

4  -5} 

5  -6J 

Cents. 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 
About  15 

MUSSEL  SHELL  INDUSTRY. 

The  statistics  hereinbefore  given  do  not  include  mussel  shells  or 
pearls.  During  the  past  ten  years  this  has  been  an  important  industry 
on  the  Illinois,  but  has  rapidly  decreased  of  late,  and  is  of  relatively 
small  importance  at  this  time.  It  is  regarded  as  an  industry  that 
attained  large  proportions  through  draft  upon  the  accumulation  of  mus¬ 
sels  of  past  years.  The  accumulation  has  been  largely  exhausted  and 
the  industry  promises  to  be  relatively  unimportant  henceforward. 

FACTORS  AFFECTING  THE  GENERAL  WELFARE  OF  FISHES. 

Before  considering  the  reasons  governing  the  recent  increase  and 
decrease  of  fish  life  in  the  Illinois  River,  it  will  make  the  discussion  more 


70 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


readily  understood  to  outline  as  briefly  as  is  consistent  with  a  fair  un¬ 
derstanding,  the  general  conditions  under  which  fish  life  tends  to  in¬ 
crease  and  decrease.  Mistaken  ideas  in  this  matter  are  believed  to  have 
been  responsible  for  unwise  experiments  in  the  propagation  of  fishes.  It 
is  no  more  to  be  expected  that  fish  will  thrive  in  a  pure  water  simply 
because  it  is  water  and  pure,  than  that  human  beings  should  prosper  if 
turned  loose  in  the  Desert  of  Sahara  with  the  thought  that  they  would 
prosper  because  air  is  available,  and  that  it  is  pure  air. 

So  far  as  the  character  of  the  water  is  concerned  different  varieties 
of  fish  thrive  -in  waters  of  different  clarity  and  cleanliness,  but  so  far 
as  concerns  the  fishes  of  the  Illinois  River,  this  stream  below  Hennepin 
seems  to  be  sufficiently  clear  and  clean  for  the  needs  of  fishes  that  have 
lately  inhabited  these  waters,  particularly  the  fishes  commercially  im¬ 
portant. 

For  prosperity  there  is  required :  first,  water  of  sufficient  purity  to 
furnish  the  necessary  oxygen;  second,  an  abundance  of  food;  third, 
extensive  breeding  grounds  where  the  eggs  may  be  laid  and  the  young 
hatched  with  a  minimum  of  molestation;  fourth,  shallow  waters  where 
the  younger  fish  may  develop  and  seek  refuge;  fifth,  deeper  waters 
where  the  more  mature  fish  may  lie,  especially  in  winter;  and,  sixth, 
the  means  of  travel  from  place  to  place  as  necessity  arises  in  the  life 
history  of  the  fish,  or  as  may  be  made  necessary  by  increasing  numbers 
and  the  scarcity  of  food. 

The  food  for  the  wild  fish  is  dependent  upon  the  richness  or  fer¬ 
tility  of  the  water  in  a  respect  similar  to  the  fertility  of  soils  in  the 
growing  of  food  for  man.  Sterile  water  has  the  same  inability  to  pro¬ 
mote  aquatic  life  possessed  by  pure  sand  to  produce  agricultural  products. 
Organic  wastes  as  sewage,  sufficiently  diluted,  furnish  the  basis  for  a 
whole  train  of  invisible  microscopic  and  minute  animal  and  vegetable 
life,  that,  through  numerous  transpositions,  furnishes  the  food  for  all 
varieties  of  fish  and  other  water  life  as  well,  including  the  fishes  feed¬ 
ing  upon  both  vegetable  and  animal  food,  dead  and  alive. 

Regarding  the  breeding  and  feeding  grounds,  Dr.  Forbes  makes  the 
following  statement  :* 

“We  learned  a  good  many  years  ago — and  this  fact  was  first  established 
in  Illinois — that  virtually  all  our  young  fishes,  whatever  their  adult  habits 
may  be,  lived  at  first  on  the  same  kind  of  food;  all  which  hatch  in  like 
situations  and  at  approximately  the  same  time,  consequently,  compete  with 
each  other  when  they  first  begin  to  feed.  We  have  learned  that  this  first 
food — the  minute  plant  and  animal  life  of  the  water,  called  its  plankton — is 
produced  almost  wholly  in  the  backwaters.  Although  flowing  streams  often 
carry  an  enormous  quantity  of  it,  this  mainly  perishes  presently  in  our  great 
silt  laden  rivers.  When,  as  in  very  low  water  in  midsummer,  the  contribu¬ 
tions  from  the  backwaters  are  reduced  to  a  minimum,  or  perhaps  wholly  cut 
off,  the  plankton  of  the  streams  also  falls  off  to  little  or  nothing.  Left  to 
itself,  indeed,  even  so  slow  a  river  as  the  Illinois,  would  virtually  empty 
itself  of  plankton  in  a  little  while.  The  fish  producing  capacity  of  the  stream 
is  thus  proportionate,  other  things  being  equal,  to  the  extent  and  fertility  of 
the  backwaters  accessible  from  it  and  contributing  to  it  at  the  hatching  time 
of  fishes.  The  plankton  content  of  a  stream  at  that  time  is  in  fact  an  excel¬ 
lent  index  to  the  productive  capacity  of  the  waters  as  a  whole.” 

*  The  work  of  the  Illinois  Biological  Station,  read  to  the  Central  Branch  of  the  American  Society  of 
Zoologists  at  Iowa  City,  April  8,  1910. 


FISHERIES . 


n 

“There  is  a  notable  harmony  between  time  of  highest  flood  in  our  great 
rivers,  the  spawning  time  of  the  bulk  of  our  fishes,  and  the  climax  period  in 
the  development  of  the  plankton.  All  coming  together  or  following  one 
another  in  quick  succession  as  they  normally  do,  conditions  are  as  favorable 
as  possible  for  a  large  stock  of  young  fishes.  The  longer  the  period  and  the 
larger  the  scale  of  the  spring  overflow,  the  better  is  the  prospect  for  a  heavy 
annual  contribution  to  the  population  of  the  stream.  To  this,  no  doubt,  is 
due  the  fact,  clearly  indicated  by  our  recent  river  work,  that  the  plankton 
product  of  the  Illinois  system  has  been  greatly  increased  by  the  opening  of 
the  drainage  canal  from  Lake  Michigan  and  the  consequent  raising  of  the 
average  level  of  the  river  by  about  three  feet,  this  rise  of  river  level,  of 
course,  resulting  in  a  very  widespread  and  longer  continued  overflow.” 

The  welfare  of  fish  life  further  requires  the  deeper  waters,  not  less 
than  four  or  five  feet,  and  perhaps  deeper,  well  below  the  reach  of  ice, 
in  which  fish  may  lie,  particularly  during  the  winter.  These  places 
must  be  of  sufficient  extent  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  aquatic 
animal  life,  so  that  sufficient  oxygen  will  always  remain  available. 
Doubtless  the  deep  places  in  the  river  may  be  utilized  for  this  refuge 
where  the  current  is  sufficiently  slow,  but  to  make  such  refuge  fully 
useful,  the  lakes  would  necessarily  be  connected  with  the  river  at  all  or 
most  seasons  of  the  year.  In  the  main  the  channel  of  the  river,  excepting 
its  shallow  borders,  seems  to  be  principally  a  road  of  travel  from  place  to 
place.  With  the  lakes  reclaimed,  the  stream  would  be  much  less  pro¬ 
ductive  of  fish  life.  The  feeding  and  breeding  grounds  would  be  too 
small  as  compared  to  the  deep  water  acreage. 

The  commercial  fishes  are  caught  in  nets  and  seines  in  which  the 
size  of  mesh  is  regulated  by  law,  and  certain  requirements  are  exacted 
in  reference  to  the  returning  of  small  fish  to  the  stream.  It  is  doubtless 
a  fact  that  many  fishes  not  taken  are  destroyed  or  so  injured  that  they 
afterwards  die  in  the  operation  of  seining,  and  there  are  people  who 
claim  that  such  operations  are  detrimental  to  fish  life.  It  is,  however, 
held  by  those  in  position  to  know,  that  the  taking  of  mature  fish  is  bene¬ 
ficial  to  the  fish  yield  and  that  there  is  probably  no  better  means  of  se¬ 
curing  the  fishes  of  proper  size  than  to  seine  or  net  them.  It  is  undoubt¬ 
edly  true  that  the  maximum  yield  will  be  secured  by  taking  the  fish 
immediately  upon  a  reasonable  maturity  for  much  the  same  reason  that 
beef  animals  are  slaughtered  at  the  age  of  two  or  three  years,  for  like 
the  farm  food  animals,  the  fishes  mature  most  rapidly  in  early  life,  after 
which  the  gain  in  weight  is  small  in  proportion  to  the  food  consumed. 
Therefore,  waters  must  be  well  fished  to  produce  the  maximum  yield. 

There  are  practical  difficulties  in  the  way  of  fishing  the  main  chan¬ 
nel  of  the  Illinois  River.  This  is  especially  true  since  the  opening  of 
the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal,  through  the  increased  water  levels  occa¬ 
sioned  thereby,  and  the  flooding  of  trees  and  brush  upon  the  banks.  At 
present  there  are  few  places  to  land  nets.  The  taking  of  fish  is  done 
principally  within  the  lakes,  although  large  quantities  are  caught  in  the 
river,  using  so  called  “nets,”  that  is,  fykes  or  hoop'  nets. 


FACTORS  AFFECTING  THE  INCREASE  AND  DECREASE  OF 

FISHES. 

With  the  above  brief  outline  of  the  matters  principally  affecting  fish 
welfare,  it  will  be  useful  for  our  purpose  to  enumerate  in  so  far  as  they 


72 


REPORT  OU  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


ma}r  be  measured,  the  causes  that  have  been  operating  recently,  tending 
toward  the  growth  and  decline  of  the  Illinois  River  fishery.  Among 
these  factors  may  be  mentioned  the  introduction  and  growth  of  the  Ger¬ 
man  carp,  the  probable  increase  in  fish  food  occasioned  by  the  Chicago 
sewage,  and  the  increased  water  levels  and  water  acreages  occasioned  by 
the  added  flow  from  Lake  Michigam  The  factors  tending  toward  re¬ 
duced  yields  include  the  decreased  breeding  and  feeding  grounds  brought 
about  through  the  reclamation  of  the  lakes  and  swamps,  the  decreased 
fishing  grounds  from  the  same  cause,  and  the  lakes  owned  and  controlled 
by  fishing  clubs,  and  in  the  upper  river,  the  only  partly  decomposed 
Chicago  sewage  which  has  driven  the  fish  from  the  places  where  it  is 
most  objectionable. 

Doubtless  the  most  important  factor  in  the  increased  fish  yield 
prior  to  1908,  has  been  the  German  carp,  and  as  there  is  some  miscon¬ 
ception  in  the  public  mind  as  to  this  fish  and  its  value,  it  will  be  useful 
to  quote  somewhat  at  length  from  the  statement  of  Dr.  Stephen  A. 
Forbes  and  Robert  E.  Richardson,  contained  in  their  volume,  “The 
Fishes  of  Illinois/*  published  by  the  Natural  History  Survey  of  Illinois. 
These  men  have  closely  studied  the  Illinois  water  life  for  many  years. 
The  quotation  is  as  follows: 

THE  GERMAN  CARP. 

“The  carp,  which  is  native  in  China,  was  introduced  into  Europe  as  early 
as  1227  (Hessel),  and  was  first  brought  to  England  at  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  first  successful  introduction  of  carp  into  the  United 
States  was  made  in  1877,  when  R.  Hessel,  for  the  U.  S.  Fish  Commission, 
brought  345  carp  to  this  country.  Of  these,  227  were  of  the  mirror  and 
leather  varieties,  and  118  were  scale-carp.  All  were  put  into  ponds  at  Wash¬ 
ington,  D.  C.,  and  multiplied  rapidly,  more  than  12,000  young  being  dis¬ 
tributed  in  1879  to  more  than  300  persons  in  25  states  and  territories.  From 
that  time  distribution  rapidly  increased  until  a  few  years  before  its  final 
discontinuance  in  1897. 

“The  introduction  of  carp  into  the  waters  of  Illinois  began  with  the  first 
distribution  (1879),  and  in  1880  scaled  carp  to  the  number  of  800  were 
received  from  the  U.  S.  Fish  Commission.  In  1881  and  1882  a  total  of  2,500 
more  carp  were  received  and  distributed  by  the  Illinois  Fish  Commission,  the 
distribution  being  mostly  made  in  lots  of  only  ten  to  a  single  person.  In 
1885  the  first  carp  were  planted  in  public  waters,  a  total  of  30,900  being  set 
free  in  the  Illinois,  Fox,  Sangamon,  Des  Plaines,  Kaskaskia,  Little  Wabash, 
Big  Muddy,  and  a  few  other  streams.  In  1886  the  first  large  carp  was  caught 
in  the  Illinois  River,  a  specimen  30  inches  long  being  taken  at  Meredosia — 
probably  escaped  from  some  pond  which  had  received  a  consignment  from 
one  of  the  early  distributions.  In  1887  about  16,000  more  carp  were  planted 
in  the  public  waters  of  the  State.  Between  1888  and  1890  reports  of  the 
capture  of  carp  of  considerable  size  increased  in  number,  particularly  from 
points  along  the  Illinois  River,  and  by  1892  this  fish  had  multiplied  to  such 
an  extent  in  the  waters  about  Havana  that  more  than  3,000  pounds  were 
taken  from  Clear  Lake  in  a  single  haul.  A  year  earlier  Bowles  had  begun 
to  ship  carp  from  Meredosia.  By  1898  the  multiplication  and  utilization  of 
carp  had  increased  to  such  an  extent  in  this  State  that  Captain  John  A. 
Schulte,  of  Havana,  wrote:  ‘From  the  information  I  can  get  as  an  official  of 
the  Illinois  Fishermen’s  Association  from  all  points  along  the  Illinois  River, 
the  carp  have  brought  more  money  than  the  catch  of  all  the  other  fish 
combined.  Long  live  the  carp!’  Carp  are  now  found  very  generally  dis¬ 
tributed  over  the  State,  being  most  common,  however,  in  the  Illinois  River 
and  in  our  other  larger  and  more  sluggish  streams  and  lakes  and  bayous 
connecting  with  them.  They  are  not  yet  very  abundant  in  southern  Illinois. 


FISHERIES. 


73 


The  carp  catch  of  the  Illinois  River  alone  now  reaches  six  to  eight  million 
pounds  a  year,  valued  at  more  than  $200,000. 

“Three  races  of  carp  are  distinguishable:  (1)  the  regularly-scaled  form, 
which  is  nearest  to  the  native  type  of  the  domesticated  races;  (2)  the  mirror 
carp,  which  has  the  body  partly  bare,  with  but  two  or  three  irregular  rows 
of  large  scales  along  the  back;  and  (3)  the  leather-carp,  which  is  scaleless, 
with  a  thick,  soft,  velvety  skin.  Many  local  German  races  of  carp,  of  no 
interest  here,  have  been  described.  Although  the  first  importation  of  carp 
by  the  U.  S.  Fish  Commission  contained  a  greater  proportion  of  the  mirror 
and  leather  races  than  of  the  scaled  carp,  the  former  did  not  thrive  except 
under  domestication,  and  today  there  are  few  mirror  or  leather  carp  living 
in  a  wild  state  in  American  waters. 

“Carp  prefer  moderately  warm  water,  not  too  deep,  and  with  plenty  of 
aquatic  vegetation.  They  will  live  in  almost  any  situation,  thriving  in  waters 
of  all  degrees  of  turbidity  and  contamination.  They  are  very  hardy  under 
extremes  of  temperature,  and  are  easily  resuscitated  after  freezing.  Carp 
shipped  from  Havana,  Ill.,  to  New  York  City  by  freight  arrive  alive  provided 
the  gills  are  kept  moist  by  melting  ice.  Although  of  lazy  habit,  resting  much 
of  the  time  on  the  bottom,  they  are  wary,  and  are  particularly  quick  to  find 
a  way  out  of  a  net,  or  to  jump- over  it.  They  are  omnivorous  feeders,  taking 
principally  vegetable  matter,  but  insect  larvae,  crustaceans  and  mollusks,  and 
other  small  aquatic  animals  as  well.  They  often  pull  up  the  roots  of  tender 
aquatic  plants  while  feeding.  Cole  (1905)  found  them  feeding  at  all  times  of 
day.  They  apparently  seek  deeper  water  in  winter,  where  they  remain  semi- 
torpid,  taking  little  or  no  food. 

“Carp  spawn  in  the  northern  United  States  in  May  and  June.  The  eggs 
are  small  and  exceedingly  numerous,  400,000  to  500,000  being  a  common 
number  in  a  4  or  5  pound  female.  They  spawn  most  frequently  during  the 
early  hours  of  the  morning.  One  large  female  is  ordinarily  accompanied  by 
four  or  five  males.  Five  or  six  hundred  eggs  are  emitted  at  a  time,  the 
oviposition  being  accompanied  by  much  splashing  on  the  part  of  both  sexes. 
The  eggs  are  scattered  about,  according  to  Cole,  adhering  to  roots  and  stems 
and  other  objects.  In  moderately  warm  weather  the  young  hatch,  in  this 
latitude,  in  about  twelve  days.  The  young  carp  reach  a  length  of  4  to  6 
inches  by  the  end  of  the  first  summer,  and  attain  a  weight  of  about  1  pound 
in  twelve  months.  By  the  end  of  the  second  summer  a  weight  of  about  3 
pounds  may  be  reached,  this  depending  upon  their  nourishment.  They  first 
spawn  in  the  spring  of  their  third  year.  Carp  in  our  waters  do  not  ordi¬ 
narily  reach  more  than  5  to  10  pounds  weight,  although  occasionally  speci¬ 
mens  have  been  taken  weighing  as  much  as  30  pounds.  In  Europe,  double 
the  latter  weight  is  said  to  have  been  reached  in  one  or  two  instances. 

“The  carp  lends  itself  more  readily,  perhaps,  than  any  other  fish  to  the 
requirements  of  artificial  culture.  The  rearing  of  carp  is  a  very  ancient 
practice,  a  treatise  on  the  subject  by  a  Chinese  dating  from  the  third  century. 
In  this  country  it  has  practically  been  discontinued  since  the  species  has 
multiplied  on  such  a  vast  scale  in  our  natural  waters.  However,  the  adapta¬ 
bility  of  the  carp  to  confinement  is  still  taken  advantage  of  in  certain  locali¬ 
ties,  especially  in  the  Great  Lake  region,  in  the  use  of  retention  ponds,  in 
which  large  numbers  of  the  summer  catch  are  held  over  to  get  the  advantage 
of  the  winter  market. 

“Carp  bite  readily  on  such  baits  as  worms,  liver,  paste,  and  bread 
crumbs,  and  in  fact  will  take  nearly  any  except  live  bait,  and  they  are  not 
lacking  in  game  qualities  when  hooked.  They  have  long  been  valued  by 
English  anglers,  but  are  not  much  thought  of  by  the  American  sportsman 
of  the  newer  school.”  • 


EFFECT  ON  OTHER  FISH. 

“Among  fishermen  and  anglers  in  America  the  carp  has  both  its  partisans 
and  its  enemies.  However,  it  is  coming  more  and  more  to  be  believed  that 
its  good  qualities  more  than  overbalance  the  other  side  of  the  account,  the 
most  serious  of  the  charges  against  it  appearing  to  rest  on  uncertain  or 
gratuitously  assumed  premises.  These  charges  have  been,  in  brief,  that  carp 
roil  the  water  and  spoil  the  breeding  and  feeding  grounds  of  other  fish;  that 


74 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


they  eat  the  spawn  of  other  fish  and  prevent  the  nesting  of  such  species  as 
bass  and  sunfishes;  that  they  spoil  the  feeding  grounds  of  water  birds  by 
eating  and  rooting  up  the  wild  rice  and  other  aquatic  plants;  and  that  they 
are  of  no  value  either  as  a  food  or  a  game  fish.  With  regard  to  the  first 
charge  it  appears  doubtful  if  the  damage  is  serious  in  waters  already  as 
muddy  as  those  of  the  Illinois  and  Mississippi  rivers.  Carp  do  hot  naturally 
seek  out  clear  and  cold  waters  to  defile  them,  and  they  would  probably  in  no 
case  be  serious  competitors  of  such  fish  as  trout  and  small-mouthed  bass. 

“The  second  charge,  if  true,  is  a  much  more  serious  one;  but  few  direct 
observations  bearing  on  this  point  have  been  made.  The  common  form  of  the 
argument,  that  ‘carp  eat  spawn,  as  shown  by  the  simultaneous  rapid  increase 
of  carp  and  decrease  of  fine  fish,’  is  not  supported  by  the  statistics  of  the 
fisheries  of  the  Illinois  River.” 


TABLE  NO.  19— COMPARATIVE  STATISTICAL  DATA,  ILLINOIS  FISHERIES,  INCLUDING 
ALL  RIVERS  AND  LAKE  MICHIGAN— TOTAL  PRODUCTS  INCLUDE  MUSSEL  SHELLS 
AND  TURTLES. 


Year. 

Number  or 
pounds. 

Value. 

Year. 

Number  or 
pounds. 

Value. 

+Men  employed. . 

1894 

*1,  653 

Pike . 

1894 

26,  000 

$  1, 600 

1899 

*2, 341 

1899 

22',  500 

lj  387 

1908 

*4,  359 

1908 

14,  000 

1, 100 

Equipment. . 

1894 

$  156, 000 

Sturgeon . 

1894 

87,  000 

2,200 

1899 

188;  000 

1899 

159',  000 

3;  970 

1908 

553,  000 

1908 

180,  000 

7,300 

Fisheries  prod- 

Suckers . 

1894 

420,  000 

9,900 

ucts . 

1894 

11, 537,  000 

333,  000 

1899 

259,  000 

7,  800 

1899 

29, 668,  000 

616,  000 

1908 

281,  000 

6,400 

1908 

74, 620,  000 

1,  436,  000 

Sunfishes . 

1894 

206,  000 

5,200 

Black  bass . 

1894 

97,000 

8,000 

1899 

543,  000 

12,  000 

1899 

126,  000 

11,000 

1908 

1,  714,  000 

31,000 

1908 

532,000 

57,  000 

Wall-eyed  pike.. 

1894 

77,  000 

5, 100 

Buffalo . 

1894 

5, 817,  000 

146,  000 

1899 

28, 900 

1,800 

1899 

4,  051,  000 

112,000 

1908 

14,  000 

1  1,500 

1908 

3,  042,  000 

117,000 

White,  yellow 

Carp . 

1894 

860,000 

21,000 

and  rock  bass. 

1894 

157,  000 

7,  200 

1899 

9, 896,  000 

244,  000 

1899 

167,  000 

5, 600 

1908 

21, 642,  000 

574,  000 

1908 

13,000 

1,100 

Catfish . 

1894 

1, 962,  000 

82,  000 

Perch . 

1894 

28,  500 

616 

1899 

l'  570',  000 

69;  000 

1899 

2o;ooo 

556 

1908 

2,  044,  000 

96,  000 

1908 

238,000 

12,  000 

Crappie . 

1894 

168,  000 

7,700 

Turtles . 

1894 

*99,  000 

3,  200 

1899 

356,'  000 

14; 400 

1899 

682;  000 

14;  500 

1908 

1,  281,  000 

35,000 

1908 

511,  000 

21, 100 

Sheepshead . 

1894 

1, 113,  000 

26,000 

Mussel  shells.... 

1894 

t24 

700 

1899 

610,000 

17, 700 

1899 

f2,  500 

43,000 

1908 

666,  000 

20,000 

1908 

f20,  000 

184,000 

Eels . 

1894 

44,000 

2,  700 

Illinois  River, 

1899 

29,200 

1,  600 

total  products. 

1894 

3,  000 

162,009 

1908 

31,  000 

1,800 

1899 

7,000 

382,  000 

Paddlefish . 

1894 

136,  000 

2,600 

1908 

23,  000 

860,000 

1899 

195,  000 

6,  200 

Lake  Michigan 

1908 

402,  000 

12,000 

dist.,  fisheries 

product . 

1908 

1, 176,  000 

58,  000 

*  Number.  f  Tons. 

t  In  1908  more  than  half  the  fishermen  of  the  State  were  on  the  Illinois  River  (2,500  persons),  and 
nearly  two-thirds  of  the  total  capital  employed  in  fisheries  ($551,000). 

In  reference  to  the  last  paragraph  of  the  above  quotation,  the 
statistics  of  the  Federal  investigations  in  the  years  1894,  1899  and  1908 
are  significant.  Dr.  Forbes  has  abstracted  these  figures  as  shown  in 
Table  No.  19.  The  statistics  cover  the  entire  State  of  Illinois.  It  will 
be  observed  that  during  this  period  the  total  fisheries  product  increased 
in  the  ratio  of  about  6y2  to  1,  the  carp  increased  at  the  rate  of  about  25 
to  1,  the  black  bass  5 y2  to  1,  crappie,  paddlefish,  sturgeon,  sunfish  and 
perch  increased  at  the  ratio  of  from  8  to  1  to  2  to  1 ;  catfish,  and  white, 


FISHERIES. 


75 


yellow  and  rock  bass  substantially  holding  their  own,  while  buffalo  fish, 
sheepshead,  eels,  pike  and  suckers  decreased.  The  buffalo,  formerly  the 
principal  food  fish  of  the  river,  markedly  decreased,  the  catch  of  1908 
being  only  half  that  of  1894.  This  was  very  much  more  than  made  up 
by  the  increase  in  carp.  Forbes  and  Eichardson  are  further  quoted  as 
follows : 

“If  these  records  show  anything  at  all  it  would  seem  to  be  that  the 
competition  of  the  carp  as  spawn-eater  and  water-soiler  has  not  seriously 
affected  many  of  our  Illinois  River  species.  It  is  by  no  means  improbable 
that  causes  entirely  apart  from  depredations  and  competition  of  carp  may 
have  had  a  large  influence  in  producing  the  recent  decrease  of  buffalo  and 
drum.  Among  such  causes  may  be  mentioned  increased  contamination  of 
waters  from  municipal  and  industrial  sources;  the  obliteration,  by  drainage 
and  diking,  of  backwaters  used  as  spawning  grounds;  and  the  increased 
rapidity  of  runoff  from  the  prairie  and  upland,  as  a  result  of  tiling  and  the 
cutting  of  the  forests,  affecting  the  extent  and  duration  of  the  spawning 
havens  afforded  by  both  swampy  areas  and  small  streams.  To  these  causes 
is  to  be  assigned  the  decrease  and  approximate  disappearance  of  such  minor 
species  as  pickerel  and  lake  sturgeon,  which  were  never  very  abundant  in 
the  rivers  in  question,  and  which  began  to  fall  off  in  numbers  long  before 
the  carp  entered  the  field. 

“It  is  not  denied  that  carp  will  eat  fish  spawn;  but  it  has  not  yet  been 
shown  that  they  seek  out  spawn  for  the  purpose  of  consuming  it.  Black 
bass,  crappie,  and  sunfish  are  doubtless  able  to  defend  their  nests  against 
carp  in  any  case.  Certainly  the  devouring  of  spawn  has  not  affected  the 
multiplication,  as  shown  by  the  output,  of  any  of  these  three  species,  or  of 
suckers  or  catfishes.  That  even  a  favorable  effect  of  the  multiplication  of 
the  carp  is  not  impossible  is  evident  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  myriads 
of  young  carp  offer  an  almost  inexhaustible  supply  of  food  to  the  growing 
bass,  crappies  and  sunfish.  The  drum  and  buffalo,  which  have  decreased,  are 
in  their  food  habits  more  directly  in  competition  with  the  carp,  being  chiefly 
bottom  feeders,  utilizing  mollusks,  crustaceans,  and  insect  larvae. 

“Of  the  third  charge  little  can  be  said.  While  it  is  admitted  by  all 
competent  to  judge  that  carp  do  uproot  vegetation  in  large  quantities,  no 
means  are  at  hand  for  comparing  the  effect  of  this  destruction  on  the  decrease 
of  water  birds  with  the  effects  of  the  operations  of  the  hunters  themselves. 
Since  1900  the  problem  has  been  complicated  in  the  case  of  the  Illinois  River 
by  the  effect  of  the  increased  flow  from  Lake  Michigan,  which  has  diminished 
vegetation  in  many  areas.” 

In  further  reference  to  the  decrease  of  certain  species,  Dr.  Forbes 
is  further  quoted  as  follows:* 

“The  cause  of  this  notable  decrease  in  several  of  our  most  important 
native  fishes  I  am  strongly  disposed  to  find  in  excessive  fishing  due  to  the 
enormous  multiplication  of  carp,  which  is  now  more  important  as  a  fisher¬ 
man’s  fish  than  all  the  other  fishes  of  the  stream  put  together.  This  has 
necessarily  stimulated  fishing  operations  until  they  have  become  too  active 
for  many  of  our  common  native  species.  If  we  want  to  keep  these  valuable 
fishes  up  to  the  normal  standard,  we  must  evidently  take  special  measures 
to  that  end.  Indeed,  we  have  found  some  remarkable  evidence  of  over¬ 
fishing  at  certain  local  points,  especially  in  Meredosia  Bay.  This  has  been 
seined  so  steadily  and  generally  that  fish  resorting  there*  have  been  pretty 
well  cleared  out,  and  the  animal  life  of  the  bottom,  upon  which  fish  depend 
largely  for  their  food,  has  also  been  very  largely  destroyed. 

“Another  cause  of  the  failure  of  many  of  our  native  fishes  is  believed 
by  my  field  assistants  to  be  a  lack  of  practicable  fish-ways  in  the  dams  at 
La  Grange  and  Kampsville.  As  our  fishes  migrate  as  a  rule  upstream  for 
their  breeding  operations  and  downstream  as  the  water  falls  in  summer,  any 
barrier  to  their  upstream  movement  necessarily  diminishes  the  stock  above 
it.  These  lower  Illinois  dams  are  under  the  control  of  the  War  Department, 

*  Unpublished  notes  on  conference  between  the  Illinois  State  Game  and  Fish  Conservation  Com¬ 
mission  and  the  Director  of  the  Natural  History  Survey,  Urbana,  Ill  ,  November  11, 1913  . 


76 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


over  which  your  commission  has,  of  course,  no  control.  On  the  other  hand, 
if  the  essential  facts  are  authoritatively  obtained  and  laid  before  that  depart¬ 
ment,  the  trouble  will  no  doubt  be  looked  after  promptly.  However,  the 
problem  of  a  satisfactory  fish-way  has  not  yet  been  finally  solved.  It  is  now 
under  investigation  by  the  Bureau  of  Fisheries,  and  the  U.  S.  Commissioner 
tells  me  that  he  is  sending  a  man  to  Europe  to  study  the  latest  developments 
there,  "where  some  improved  fish-ways  are  said  to  be  in  very  successful  use.” 

CONTAMINATION  AND  FISH  FOOD. 

Reference  has  previously  been  made  to  the  contamination  in  the 
Upper  Illinois  River  through  the  sewage  of  the  city  of  Chicago  and  its 
double  effect;  first,  its  effect  in  increasing  the  available  fish  food,  and 
second,  its  effect  in  making  the  upper  waters  of  the  river  uninhabitable 
for  fishes.  Fortunately  the  last  named  effect  has  not  yet  seriously  in¬ 
vaded  the  best  fishing  grounds  of  the  stream.  Dr.  Forbes  treats  these 
effects  together  in  the  notes  last  above  referred  to,  as  follows: 

“We  have  noticed  in  all  our  upper  river  work  that,  where  the  stream  is 
heavily  polluted,  this  does  not  have  the  effect  to  kill  the  fishes  which  belong 
there.  Indeed,  I  believe  we  have  never  seen  a  dead  fish  in  the  Illinois  River, 
evidently  killed  by  foul  water.  On  the  contrary,  this  merely  creates  condi¬ 
tions  which  fishes  are  intelligent  enough  to  avoid.  Fishes  brought  into  the 
sanitary  canal  by  the  inflow  from  Lake  Michigan,  and  thus  subjected  to  the 
action  of  the  sewage  where  they  cannot  escape  from  it,  practically  all  perish 
before  they  reach  the  Illinois  River;  but  in  that  stream  itself  fishes  offended 
by  the  pollution  of  the  waters  simply  withdraw  into  streams,  sloughs,  and 
lakes  connected  with  the  main  river  until  this  becomes  tolerable  to  them 
again.  The  assistant  in  charge  of  my  Illinois  River  operations,  Mr.  R.  E. 
Richardson,  tells  me  that  he  has  often  seen  carp  in  Mazon  slough,  near 
Morris,  come  down  in  the  morning  in  large  numbers  to  the  mouth  of  the 
slough,  and  line  up  there  at  the  edge  of  the  river  as  if  anxious  to  enter  it 
but  afraid  to  do  so.  Once  in  a  while  a  fish  ventured  out  a  foot  or  two  into 
the  polluted  current,  but  immediately  returned.  In  the  normal  movements 
of  our  river  fishes  upstream  during  the  breeding  season,  they  simply  stop 
short  or  turn  back  upon  their  course,  when  they  come  to  unwholesome  water 
in  the  main  river.  Similarly,  when  they  find  themselves  shut  out  from  their 
usual  breeding  grounds  by  drainage  operations,  they  evidently  continue  their 
journey  until  they  reach  satisfactory  locations. 

“It  is  thus  that  we  may  explain  the  evident  concentration  of  fish  popula¬ 
tion  of  the  river  in  the  central  part  of  its  course — a  section  of  the  stream 
which,  with  its  overflow  lands,  is  able  to  maintain,  at  least  for  a  time,  a 
much  larger  population  than  would  otherwise  have  been  possible,  by  reason 
of  the  more  extensive  overflow,  the  larger  size  of  the  lakes,  and  the  longer 
continuance  of  high-water  stages  since  the  opening  of  the  drainage  canal. 

“We  have  found,  by  a  careful  comparison  of  the  product  of  these  waters 
(Thompson  Lake)  in  the  minute  plant  and  animal  life  called  the  plankton, 
that  the  river  at  that  point  contains  about  two  and  a  half  times  as  much 
plankton  per  cubic  yard  of  water  now  as  it  did  before  the  drainage  canal 
was  opened.  In  other  words,  we  have  a  very  large  increase  in  the  amount 
of  the  water  and  a  great  increase  also  in  the  amount  of  plankton  produced. 
As  this  plankton’ product  is  an  index  of  the  quantity  of  fish  food  produced 
in  the  stream,  these  facts,  as  you  will  see,  have  a  direct  bearing  on  the 
statement  just  made  with  regard  to  the  continued  productivity  of  the  river 
as  a  whole  and  the  increased  product  of  its  central  section. 

“There  is  another  factor  which  we  must  take  into  account.  The  Chicago 
sewage  comes  into  the  river  at  its  upper  end  in  a  raw  state — not  available, 
that  is,  as  a  food  for  fishes.  It  is  rapidly  decomposed  in  the  upper  part  of 
the  stream  in  midsummer,  and  in  its  decomposition  it  takes  the  oxygen  out 
of  the  water,  but  becomes  itself  converted  into  what  we  call  nitrites,  and 
then  into  nitrates,  in  which  latter  stage  it  becomes  available  food  for  plants 
and  indirectly  food  for  animals,  and  these  in  turn  are  food  for  our  river 


FISHERIES. 


77 


fishes.  This  process  of  the  conversion  of  raw  sewage  into  available  food  is  a 
gradual  one,  progressing  downstream  at  various  rates  according  to  the  stage 
of  water  and  the  temperature  at  the  time;  but  I  have  a  good  deal  of  reason 
to  suppose  that  by  the  time  the  water  has  reached  the  central  section  this 
conversion  process  is  practically  complete,  and  that  here,  consequently,  this 
added  food  becomes  generally  available  for  the  sustenance  of  fishes.  I  am 
undertaking  right  now  to  test  the  correctness  of  this  supposition  by  collect¬ 
ing  several  series  of  water  samples  from  selected  points  the  whole  length  of 
the  river  at  different  stages  of  water  and  at  different  seasons  of  the  year,  to 
be  analyzed  at  the  University  by  the  assistants  of  the  Water  Survey  of  the 
State,  which  cooperates  with  me  on  these  chemical  inquiries.  I  have  indeed 
already  a  large  lot  of  samples  of  the  bottom  sediment  or  slime  of  the  river 
and  the  adjacent  lakes,  in  form  for  chemical  analysis;  and  by  next  spring  I 
shall  be  prepared  to  give  you  much  more  definite  information  upon  these 
points.  If  I  am  right  in  this  matter,  the  central  section  of  the  river  and 
the  waters  connected  with  it  may  be  regarded  as  a  huge  stomach  in  which 
the  organic  matter  contained  in  the  Chicago  sewage  is  digested,  assimilated, 
and  worked  up,  in  considerable  measure,  into  the  flesh  of  fishes  for  our 
consumption.” 

Although  one  year’s  study  has  indicated  a  large  increase  in  the 
plankton  of  the  river,  it  is  not  to  be  inferred  that  the  fish  food  has  in¬ 
creased  in  the  same  ratio,  for  the  plankton  is  a  minor  element  in  the 
food  of  fishes,  most  of  which  feed  upon  or  near  the  bottom  and  very  few 
of  which  use  the  plankton  beyond  their  youngest  stages. 

The  organic  nitrates  which  are  the  basis  of  the  plant  and  animal  life 
of  the  stream,  have  apparently  not  increased  per  unit  of  water,  but  it 
is  fair  to  state  that  in  bulk  the  quantity  of  nitrates  is  much  greater  on 
account  of  the  greater  flow  of  the  stream. 

It  would  seem  that  the  inference  that  a  larger  bulk  of  fish  food  is 
now  available  is  a  fair  one. 


EFFECT  OF  INCREASED  WATER  LEVELS. 

The  increased  water  levels  that  have  prevailed  in  the  Illinois  River 
since  1900  have  obviously  tended  to  greater  water  areas  and  greater 
areas  of  land  submerged  during  the  breeding  season  of  the  fishes. 

Prior  to  1904  very  little  had  been  done  in  the  reclamation  of  farm 
lands,  but  thereafter  the  reclamation  was  rapid  as  has  been  previously 
outlined  in  the  part  of  this  report  discussing  agriculture,  and  more  par¬ 
ticularly,  the  diagrams  Fig.  11  to  Fig.  19  illustrative  of  the  acres  sub¬ 
merged  at  various  water  stages. 


COMBINED  EFFECT  OF  INCREASED  WATER  LEVELS  AND 

RECLAMATION. 

Fig.  26  indicates :  first,  the  yield  of  fish  from  the  Illinois  River, 
based  on  tabular  data  previously  herein  presented;  second,  the  greatest 
water  acreage  that  has  prevailed  in  each  of  the  past  years,  1894  to  1915, 
and  third,  the  water  acreage  that  was  equaled  or  exceeded  for  about  half 
the  time  in  each  of  the  several  years  enumerated. 

The  curves  of  acreage  take  into  account  the  reduction  in  the  flooded 
land  occasioned  by  the  levees  constructed  principally  subsequent  to  1904. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  yield  of  fish  has  fairly  well  kept  pace  with 
the  prevailing  water  acreage.  Throughout  most  of  the  period  con¬ 
sidered,  the  yield  has  been  approximately  100  lbs.  of  fish  per  acre  of 


78 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


water  surface,  prevailing  for  about  half  the  year.  Since  1910,  the  yield 
per  acre  has  apparently  been  smaller,  but  the  data  of  fish  yield  for  the 
years  since  1908,  is  perhaps  too  uncertain  to  warrant  the  conclusion  that 


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Diagram  Showing 

Relation  of  Fish  Yields 

TO 

Water  Acreages 

Considering  Prevajling  Water  Stages 
Land  Reclaimed  by  Levees 

To  Accompany  Report  of 
Alvord  8c  Burdick 
Engineers  Chicago 

Note  :  Acreages,  unless  otherwise  stated,  include  River  Bed. 


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FIGURE  26. 


the  yield  of  fish  has  fallen  off  more  rapidly  than  the  reduction  in  acre¬ 
age,  although  the  data  tends  to  point  toward  this  conclusion.  At  the 
bottom  of  the  diagram  we  show  the  area  of  lakes  at  the  low*  water  plane 


FISHERIES. 


79 


of  1901,  platted  from  Table  No.  20  herewith  submitted.  It  seems  to  us 
questionable  whether  valuable  deductions  can  be  drawn  from  the  com¬ 
parison  of  the  fish  yields  with  the  low  water  area  of  the  lakes,  especially 
the  low  water  areas  at  a  fixed  datum  plane  such  as  1901.  The  area  in 
lakes  at  this  plane  has  always  been  substantially  constant  prior  to  about 
1904.  There  was  a  slight  decrease  in  the  lake  acreage  between  1904  and 
1908,  and  a  more  rapid  decrease  between  1908  and  the  present  time. 

TABLE  NO.  20— TABLE  SHOWING  ACREAGE  IN  LAKES— ILLINOIS  RIVER  VALLEY 
BEFORE  THE  CONSTRUCTION  OF  LEVEES  AND  THE  ACREAGE  AS  REDUCED  IN 
SUBSEQUENT  YEARS  THROUGH  CONSTRUCTION  OF  LEVEE  DISTRICTS. 

All  areas  based  on  the  low  water  plane  of  1901. 


As  existing  in  the — 

Description  of  reach. 

1 

Miles  of 
river. 

Virgin 
v  alley 
before 
levee 
construc¬ 
tion — 
acres. 

Year 

1904- 

acres. 

Year 

1908- 

acres. 

Year 

1913- 

acres. 

In  1914, 
includ¬ 
ing 

projects 
being 
built — 
acres. 

When  all 
projected 
districts 
are  built 
— acres. 

Grafton  to  Kampsville  Lock. 

31.5 

2, 710 

2,  710 

2,  710 

2,150 

2, 170 

2,170 

Kampsville  Lock  to  Mere- 
dosia . 

39.8 

7,  720 

7,  700 

5, 950 

2, 450 

1,360 

930 

Meredosia  to  Browning . 

26.0 

5,  770 

5, 520 

5, 180 

3, 880 

2,060 

2,  060 

Browning  to  Mossville . 

75.  6 

24,  220 

24,  220 

24, 180 

20,  280 

18, 130 

14, 130 

Mossville  to  Henry  Lock  .... 

24.1 

1,870 

1,870 

1,870 

1,870 

1,740 

1,150 

Henry  Lock  to  La  Salle . 

27.4 

7,  050 

7,  050 

7,  050 

6, 140 

6, 140 

2,440 

Grafton  to  La  Salle . 

224.4 

49, 340 

49,  070 

46,940 

36, 770 

31, 600 

22,  880 

When  the  present  levee  projects  are  completed,  the  “leveed-in  lake 
areas'5  will  aggregate  40  per  cent  of  the  acreage  originally  existing. 
When  all  projected  districts  are  built,  about  55  per  cent  of  the  lakes 
will  be  cut  off  from  the  river.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  fishes  breed, 
to  a  large  extent  feed,  and  are  taken  by  the  fishermen  mainly  in  the  lakes 
or  from  overflowed  marshes,  it  does  not  require  a  lengthy  argument  to 
show  that  levee  construction  is  detrimental  to  the  public  fishery. 

FISH  YIELD  BY  DISTRICTS. 

Table  No.  21  shows  the  yield  of  fish  in  pounds  for  the  various  por¬ 
tions  of  the  Illinois  River.  This  data  is  taken  from  the  statistics  of  the 
Illinois  Fishermen's  Association  and  the  Illinois  Fish  Commission, 
which  distributes  the  fish  according  to  the  shipping  points.  The  infor¬ 
mation,  therefore,  serves  to  show  approximately  what  parts  of  the  river 
have  produced  various  quantities  of  fish  under  the  changed  circumstances 
of  recent  years. 

An  examination  of  this  table  in  connection  with  Table  No.  20 
which  shows  the  water  acreages  divided  into  the  same  reaches  as  covered 
by  the  table  of  fish  production,  indicates  that  in  the  lower  portion  of 
the  river  where  the  land  reclamation  has  been  most  extensive,  the 
growth  in  the  fish  production  between  1896  and  1908  was  smallest,  and 
that  the  largest  growths  in  yields  occurred  in  the  middle  portion  of  the 
river  where  few  levees  had  been  built  up  to  1908. 


80 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER 


TABLE  NO.  21— STATEMENT  OF  FISH  SHIPPED  FROM  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER  FOR  THE 

YEARS  1896,  1897,  1899,  1900,  1907,  1908. 


Name  of  shipping 
point. 

Miles 

above 

Graf¬ 

ton. 

1896 

From  the 
report  of 
the  Illinois 
Fisher¬ 
men’s 
Associa¬ 
tion — 
pounds. 

1897 

From  the 
report  of 
the  Illinois 
Fisher¬ 
men’s 
Associa¬ 
tion- 
pounds. 

1899 

From  the 
report  of 
the  Illinois 
Fisher¬ 
men’s 
Associa¬ 
tion — 
pounds. 

1900 

From  the 
report  of 
the  Illinois 
Fisher¬ 
men’s 
Associa¬ 
tion- 
pounds. 

1907 

From  the 
report 
of  the 
Illinois 
Fish 
Commis¬ 
sion — 
pounds. 

1908 

From  the 
report 
of  the 
Illinois 
Fish 
Commis¬ 
sion — 
pounds. 

Grafton . 

0.0 

21.2 

32.0 

32.0 

41.9 

50.2 

55.6 

56.1 

58.1 

61.6 

65.  6 

71.3 

88.7 

97.3 
105.  5 
111.0 
120.1 
128.0 
145.5 
152.9 

196,300 
61,400 
240, 050 

186, 500 
67, 500 
223,  050 

199, 900 
214, 000 
381,  250 

262, 100 
163,210 
595, 420 

322,000 

50,000 

375,000 

360,000 
120, 000 
425, 000 

Hardin . 

Kampsville . 

Columbiana . 

497, 750 

477,  050 

795, 150 

1, 020, 730 

747,  000 

905,000 

37, 600 
397,  000 
93,  050 
296, 100 

172. 500 
15,  000 

179.500 

363. 500 

Pearl . 

190,  000 

190,000 

247, 400 

280,000 

325,000 

Montezuma . 

Florence . 

Harris  Landing . 

Blue  Island . 

Valley  City . 

138,  000 

176,600 
222, 550 

40,000 

17,000 

62,  000 
»  22,000 

N  aples . 

Meredosia . 

190, 000 

328,  000 

646, 550 

1, 554,  250 

337,  000 

409,000 

277,  000 
1, 678,  280 

171,  000 
1, 436, 600 

310, 500 
1,  789, 600 

581,990 

1,385,470 

500, 000 
1, 800,  000 

684, 000 
1, 950,  000 

Beardstown . 

Browning . 

1, 955,  280 

1, 607, 600 

2, 100, 100 

1,967,  460 

2, 300,  000 

2, 634,  000 

520, 500 

1, 103, 700 
153,  700 
207. 500 
1,600,183 
190, 180 

869,  700 
160, 100 
282, 570 
1,830, 291 
210, 680 

862, 150 
412, 490 
368, 800 
1, 368,  010 
152, 930 

1,400,000 

1,  700,  000 

Bluff  City . 

B  ath . . 

270,  200 
1, 573, 298 
137, 515 
11,368 
410,  000 

1,500,000 
2,  700,  000 

1,900,000 
3,  800,  000 

Havana . 

Liverpool . 

Kingston  Mines . 

Pekin . 

200, 160 

773,  690 

2,  800,  000 

3,  400,  000 

Pekin  and  Copperas 
Creek . 

567, 390 
2, 104, 940 

Peoria . 

162.7 

180.5 

931,400 

2, 124, 540 

1,  240,  070 

1, 500,  000 

2, 800,  000 

Chillicothe . 

3, 854,  281 

5, 579, 963 

6,  025, 671 

5, 178, 140 

9,900,000 

13, 600,  000 

255, 500 

765, 800 

275,  000 

350,000 

Chillicothe  and  Lacon. 
Lacon . 

564, 650 

1,  092, 700 

189.1 

189.1 

196.0 

203.0 

150,  000 

130,500 

Sparland . 

75,  000 
700,000 

102,  000 
750,  000 

Henry . 

245,  000 

388,  760 

Putnam . 

650, 500 

564, 650 

1,  092,  700 

1,  285,  060 

1,  050,  000 

1,  202,  000 

56, 580 

120,000 

175,000 

Henry  and  Putnam  . 

938,  000 

530,  000 

Hennepin . 

207.5 

210.0 

28,420 

155, 130 

Bureau . 

42,  000 

56,  000 

Hennepin  and  Bureau 
Creek . 

168,  230 
171,  825 
61,390 

166,330 
162, 625 
88, 390 

Depue . 

212.5 
218.3 

224.5 

287,  000 
76,410 

11,000 

19,  000 

Spring  Valley . 

La  Salle . 

232,  000 

270,  000 

Total  weight — 
pounds . 

85,  000 

1,339,445 

947,345 

518,540 

405,  000 

520, 000 

7,  232, 811 
$207, 687.  22 
$0.  029 

9, 896, 708 
$279, 482.  07 
$0.  027 

11,607,516 
$362,  246.  77 
$0.  031 

11,524,180 
$388,876.40 
$0.  034 

14,  739,  000 

19,  270,  000 

Total  Value . 

Price  per  pound 

.  

THE  POSSIBILITIES  OF  FISH  CULTUEE  COMPARED  WITH 

ILLINOIS  RIVER  YIELDS. 

To  fairly  measure  the  fish  productivity  of  the  Illinois  River  and 
to  gain  an  approximation  of  future  possibilities,  it  will  be  useful  to  com¬ 
pare  the  yield  of  our  stream  with  the  fish  yields  in  some  foreign  coun- 


FISHERIES. 


81 


tries  where  fish  culture  has  been  studied  and  practiced.  Most  of  the 
available  experience  has  been  gained  in  Germany  and  Austria,  although 
fish  culture  has  been  extensively  practiced  in  Japan  and  in  China  for 
centuries. 

ILLINOIS  RIVER  YIELD,  1908. 

In  order  that  we  may  have  a  yardstick  to  measure  the  foreign  expe¬ 
rience,  it  will  be  useful  to  set  down  the  Illinois  River  yield  as  per  U.  S. 
Census  for  the  year  1908.  Table  No.  22  shows  the  figures  for  1908  in 
total  and  per  acre  of  water  surface  under  various  conditions,  from  the 
low  water  of  1901  to  the  high  water  of  1904.  It  will  be  well  to  keep  in 
mind  that  1908  was  a  banner  fishing  year,  the  total  product  being  more 
than  twice  the  average  of  the  ten  or  fifteen  preceding  years.  The  cause 
was  probably  the  long  continued  high  water  of  that  spring  and  several 
springs  preceding  during  the  breeding  time  and  the  most  important 
feeding  time  of  the  fishes,  coupled  with  the  low  water  in  the  fall,  which 
gave  the  fishermen  an  extraordinary  chance  to  harvest  their  crop. 


TABLE  NO.  22— YIELD  OF  ILLINOIS  RIVER  FISHERIES  (EXCLUSIVE  OF  MUSSEL 

SHELLS  AND  PEARLS)  YEAR  1908. 


Pounds. 

Value  to 
fishermen 
at  three 
cents  per 
pound. 

Total  (by  United  States  Census) . 

23,  896,  000 
106,700 

317 

$721.  000  00 

Per  mile  of  river  (La  Salle  to  Grafton— 224) . 

3,  220  00 

Per  acre  of  river  lakes  and  ponds,  at  plane  of  low  water  of  1901,  excluding  lakes 
within  agricultural  levee  districts  (75,  430  A.) . 

9  58 

Per  acre  of  lakes  and  ponds  at  plane  of  low  water  of  1901,  excluding  lakes  within 
agricultural  levee  districts  (46,940  A.) . 

510 

15  40 

Per  acre  of  water  normally  prevailing  about  one-half  the  year  in  river  ponds  and 
lakes  (i.  e.  10  feet  on  Beardstown  gage)  based  on  the  virgin  river  valley 
as  with  no  levees  (157,000  A.) . 

152 

4  60 

Per  acre  of  water  normally  prevailing  about  one-half  the  year  in  river  ponds 
and  lakes  (i.  e.  10  feet  on  Beardstown  gage)  excluding  area  of  river  (128,510 

186 

5  61 

Per  acre  of  flood  water,  1904,  flood  plane  (358,740) . 

67.5 

2  01 

Per  acre  of  land  and  lakes  flooded/1904,  flood  plane  (280,910) . 

85 

2  57 

It  is  further  significant  to  note  that  in  the  natural  river  and  its 
connected  waters,  the  acreage  varies  widely  with  the  stage  of  water,  and 
hence  with  the  season  of  the  year  so  that  it  is  unfair  to  fish  farming  to 
compare  low  water  acreages  in  the  rivers  and  lakes  with  the  product  of 
artificial  ponds  where  the  acreage  is  constant,  for  in  the  river  and  con¬ 
nected  waters,  the  wild  fish  breed  and  feed  over  areas  tremendously 
larger  than  prevail  at  low  water.  To  base  the  acre  yield  of  fish  on  the 
low  water  area  of  the  Illinois  River  is  like  basing  the  live  stock  yield 
on  the  farm  upon  the  area  of  the  barnyard.  The  true  measure  of  the 
wild  fish  yield  should  be  based  upon  an  acreage  somewhere  between  that 
at  low  water  and  flood.  For  comparison  with  acre  yields  in  agriculture, 
the  yield  of  the  river  must  be  compared  with  the  acres  of  land  that  could 
be  reclaimed  and  hence,  practically  the  area  of  land  above  the  low  water 
plane  frequently  flooded,  excluding  the  channel  of  the  river  at  low 
water  and  possibly  some  of  the  lakes. 

Table  No.  22  shows  the  Illinois  River  fish  yield  for  1908  in  pounds 
and  value,  together  with  the  yields  per  acre  on  various  surfaces  from  low 
— 6  R  L 


S2 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


water  to  high  water.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  yield  of  fish  was 
$2.01  per  acre  of  flood  water,  in  the  flood  of  1904,  and  $15.40  per  acre  of 
lakes  and  ponds  at  the  low  water  plane  of  1901.  It  was  $2.57  per  acre 
of  land  and  lake  beds  flooded  in  1904,  excluding  the  low  water  channel 
of  the  river. 


FOREIGN  FISH  YIELDS. 

Actual  figures  on  foreign  fish  yields  are  difficult  to  secure ;  little 
authentic  information  is  published  in  English.  Through  the  assistance 
of  the  State  Laboratory  of  Natural  History,  a  search  in  the  German  pub¬ 
lications  has  furnished  data  which  are  summarized  in  Table  23.  This 
table  includes  a  few  data  of  actual  yield  and  a  few  summarized  conclu¬ 
sions  of  foreign  observers  believed  to  be  well  informed.  A  column  is 
shown  of  gross  return  in  fish  per  acre  of  pond  surface.  The  last  column 
in  the  table  shows  the  equivalent  yield  per  acre  based  on  the  average 
price  of  Illinois  fish  for  1908,  which  was  about  3  cents  per  pound.  This 
is  about  one-fourth  or  one-fifth  of  European  prices. 

TABLE  NO.  23— SUMMARIZED  DATA  ON  FISH  YIELDS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES. 


Pounds  Cents 

per  acre.  Per , 
pound. 


Gross  yield 
per  acre. 


Gross 
yield  per 
acre 
three 
cents 
pound. 


1.  A  German  pond  fishery  with  202  acres  in  ponds — 

artificial  feeding.  Carefully  operated — Fischerei 
Zeitung,  1907.  Product  almost  entirely  carp . 

2.  E.  Walters’  estimate  of  the  yield  of  carp'  per  year  in 

Germany  without  feeding'or  manuring  from  ponds 
laid  dry  over  winter — Fischerei  Zeitung,  1907 — 
On  poor  uncultivated  land,  bog  or  otherwise 

sterile  bottom . 

On  sour  and  bad  meadow  land,  alder  swamps 

and  mud  holes . 

On  good  meadow  land . 

On  first  class  ground . 

3.  A  recorded  yield  from  wild  waters,  Germany.  A  pond 

or  lake,  8.83  acres,  with  hard  sandy  bottom,  depth 
9  feet,  containing  a  varied  assortment  of  wild  fish— 


252 

14.8 

43.5 

*10.1 

87 

10.1 

174 

10. 1 

348 

10. 1 

$37  20 


4  40 

8  80 
17  60 
35  20 


Fischerei  Zeitung,  1908 . 

4.  Yield  of  cloister  ponds  in  Jutland,  Denmark.  Four 

national  ponds;  fish  not  fed.  (F.  Z.,  1910) . 

5.  Unusual  yield  of  carp  in  small  pond  culture,  Japan, 

heavily'fed.  225  acres  in  very  small  ponds.  Fisch¬ 
erei  Zeitung,  1907 . 

6.  Statement  as  to  German  yields,  Zeitschrift  Fur 

Fischerei,  1897 — 

Small  fish  ponds  not  unusual . 

If  ponds  are  fed  from  wastes  of  farm  or  an 

entire  community— pounds  of  carp . 

Village  of  Kraschnitz,  10  acres  product  in  year, 


1,517 


1,778 


267  to  334 


1896 . 

Known  cases  by  feeding  and  the  use  of  newer 
rational  methods . 


3.  5 


25  40 
62  23 
30  00  to  40  00 


71  00 
100  00. 


$  7  55 


1  30 

2  61 
5  22 

10  44 


45  51 


53  40 


8  02  to  10  00 
+21  30 
+30  00 


*  Average  price  for  carp  in  Germany,  1907. 
t  Assuming  German  price  to  have  been  10  cents  per  pound. 

Although  some  remarkable  yields  are  shown  up  to  $100.00  per  acre 
per  year  at  foreign  prices,  the  German  experience,  which  seems  to  be 
more  conservative  and  accurate,  seems  to  give  promise  of  not  more  than 
from  $35.00  to  $40.00  per  acre  at  the  German  prices,  and  from  $7.00  to 
$10.00  at  the  American  prices  now  prevailing.  The  greatest  fishing  year 
on  the  Illinois  River  seems  to  compare  quite  favorably  with  these  figures. 


FISHERIES. 


83 


THE  YIELD  OF  A  FISH  FARM. 


As  bearing  upon  the  future  possibilities  in  the  Illinois  River  val¬ 
ley,  it  is  instructive  to  quote  the  somewhat  detailed  figures  of  one  com¬ 
mercial  fish  farm  in  Germany  as  shown  in  Table  Yo.  24.  It  will  be 
observed  that  202  acres  of  water  surface  divided  into  52  ponds,  with  a 
total  investment  of  $29,094,  including  land,  returned  gross  $37.30  per 
acre  at  an  annual  cost  including  four  per  cent  on  the  investment  of 
$27.15  per  acre,  leaving  a  net  profit  of  $10.15  per  acre.  The  net  return 
on  the  investment  exclusive  of  interest  was  11  per  cent. 

It  is  instructive  to  note  that  the  overseer  received  only  $432  per 
year  and  that  the  total  expense  for  labor  was  only  $1,140 ;  further,  that 
the  average  price  received  for  fish  was  about  13.6  cents  per  pound.  At 
present  American  prices  for  labor  and  for  fish,  the  yield  from  this  farm 
would  have  been  very  much  less  than  the  running  expenses.  Where  suit¬ 
able  ponds  exist,  however,  or  can  be  cheaply  constructed  on  land  not 
otherwise  useful,  as  is  the  case  in  many  of  the  levee  districts  of  the 
Illinois  River  Valley,  it  is  possible  that  intelligent  fish  culture  as  an 
adjunct  to  farming  can  be  made  practicable.  It  is  understood  that  ex¬ 
periments  along  this  line  are  now  being  made  by  farmers  in  the  valley. 
It  would  be  well  if  their  efforts  in  this  direction  could  be  so  supervised 
by  the  State  that  the  experiment  is  fairly  tried. 


TABLE  NO.  24— FINANCIAL  STATEMENT  OF  A  GERMAN  POND  FISHERY  FROM  THE 

FISCHEREI  ZEITUNG,  1907,  P.  517. 

Area  of  water  surface  202  acres  divided  into  52  ponds. 


Value  of  Plant — 

Land .  $11,527  20 

Pond  system . . .  8, 902  80 

Buildings .  2, 808  00 

Fish  .  4, 126  80 

Old  inventories .  343  20 

Gates  and  sluices .  1,386  00 


Total .  $29, 094  00 


Total. 


Per  acre. 


Income  from  sale  of  fish *  ( principally  carp  at  13. 6 
cents  per  pound) . 

$7,  535  04 

$37  30 

Expense  and  Fixed  Charges — 

Four  per  cent  on  $29,094 . 

$1, 163  76 
53  04 
3  84 

$  76  08 

72  00 
92  40 

432  00 
708  00 
204  00 
172  80 
124  08 

1,  788  00 
151  20 
13  20 

433  92 

Land  and  building  tax . 

Fire  insurance . . .  T . 

$  6  05 

Repairs  to  buildings . 

$1,220  64 

Renewal  of  implements . 

Renewal  of  gates  and  sluices . 

Salary  of  overseer . 

Other  help . 

Transportation  charges . 

Fertilizers . 

Lime . 

Fish  food . 

Office  expense . 

Sickness  and  medicines . 

Loss  of  fishes . 

Total . 

4,  267  68 

21  10 

$5,488  32 

$27  15 

Net  profit . 

$2, 046  72 

$10  15 

*  The  sales  of  fish  in  normal  years  from  this  property  averages  as  follows: 

Carp,  pounds . 

Tench,  pounds . fi”" _ h !!!.! h 

Trout,  pounds . ! !  W  W ! ! "  W Y 


47, 178 
2, 866 
875 


Total,  pounds 


50, 919 


PART  VI. 


PAST  FLOODS  AND  THE  PROBABILITIES  OF  THE  FUTURE. 

From  what  has  been  said  in  Part  III,  as  to  the  extent  to  which  the 
construction  of  levees  has  encroached  upon  the  bottom  lands,  it  will  be 
realized  that  the  safety  of  these  and  other  bottom  land  improvements 
depends  upon  the  adequacy  of  the  designs  to  meet  the  future  flood  con¬ 
ditions.  Waterways  must  be  maintained  of  sufficient  width  and  depth 
to  permit  the  passage  of  the  floods. 

In  the  consideration  of  this  matter,  it  becomes  necessary  to  esti¬ 
mate  the  maximum  rates  of  flow  likely  to  occur,  for  a  comparison  of 
flood  heights  alone,  past  and  future,  is  impracticable  on  account  of  the 
important  changes  brought  about  through  levee  construction. 

In  making  an  estimate  of  future  flood  rates,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  closely  examine  past  experience,  for  we  can  view  the  future  no  more 
accurately  than  we  can  see  the  past.  The  past  furnishes  the  best  guide 
for  the  future.  It,  therefore,  becomes  of  significance  to  inquire  as  to 
the  flood  rates  that  have  occurred  upon  the  Illinois  Kiver.  In  this 
inquiry  it  will  be  useful  to  examine  a  record  of  flood  heights,  for,  while 
the  greatest  height  and  greatest  flow  are  not  always  simultaneous,  they 
are  likely  to  be  approximately  so,  and  we  may  reasonably  look  for  the 
greatest  flow  rates  among  the  years  when  the  highest  gage  readings 
occurred. 


FLOOD  HEIGHTS. 

Table  ISo.  25  shows  the  maximum  gage  height  in  each  year  so  far 
as  it  is  a  matter  of  record ;  at  Peoria  from  1867  to  1914,  and  at  Beards- 
town,  Pearl  and  Grafton  since  1879  or  1880.  These  are  not  simultaneous 
gage  readings,  but  record  the  highest  elevation  of  the  water  during  the 
year  at  the  several  places.  The  date  of  each  high  water  is  noted  in  the 
table.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  same  flood  does  not  always  produce 
the  highest  water  of  the  year  at  every  place  upon  the  river;  thus,  very 
frequently  the  maximum  gage  height  at  Grafton  occurs  in  May,  June 
or  July,  being  influenced  principally  by  the  Mississippi  Kiver.  Pearl  is 
influenced  by  the  Mississippi  Kiver  to  a  less  degree.  At  Beardstown 
and  Peoria  the  gage  heights  are  governed  almost  entirely  by  Illinois 
River  flows,  the  maximum  flood  usually  occurring  in  March  or  in  April. 

The  flood  of  greatest  height  upon  the  Illinois  River  occurred  before 
the  establishment  of  the  present  gages.  This  flood  was  so  remarkable 
however,  as  to  leave  well  authenticated  marks  well  distributed  through¬ 
out  the  river  valley  and  for  comparative  purposes,  we  have  shown  the 
gage  height  of  this  flood  at  the  four  places  noted,  as  it  would  have  been 
had  gages  been  in  place  as  at  present. 

84 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


85 


TABLE  NO.  25— HIGHEST  WATER  IN  EACH  YEAR— GAGE  HEIGHT  AT  SALIENT 

PLACES  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


Peoria. 

Beardstown. 

Pearl. 

Grafton. 

Miles  from  mmith  . 

163.0 

88.9 

43. 1 

Zp.ro  of  gfvgft  Mp.mphis  D. 

435. 82 

427.  25 

419.  70 

410. 96 

Low  water  of  1 901 . 

5.5 

Julv  26-28 

6.  7 

J  ulv  26-28 

5.42 

1.4 

Dec.  1 

7-18 

1867 .  . 

21. 33 

Feb. 

20 

1868 .  . 

15.  75 

May 

12 

1869 .  . 

19. 17 

July 

1 

1870.  . .  . 

16.  25 

Mar. 

29 

1871 .  . 

15. 66 

Mar. 

19 

1872 . 

1873 . 

15.42 

Apr. 

13 

1874 . 

13.  75 

Feb. 

19 

1875 . 

1876 . 

16.  58 

Apr. 

7 

1877 . 

15. 50 

Apr. 

5 

1878 . 

1879 . 

11.7 

Apr. 

22 

8.6 

Apr. 

25 

1880 . 

13.4 

May 

17 

16.6 

May 

1 

19.  05 

July 

8-  9 

1881 . 

16. 1 

Dec. 

31 

22. 89 

Mav 

5 

1882 . 

17.8 

June 

16 

23. 14 

Julv  5-  6 

1883 . 

20. 88 

21.8 

Feb. 

25 

23.34 

June 

25 

1884 . 

17. 66 

Mar. 

29 

16.6 

Apr. 

2 

21.09 

Apr. 

6-  7 

1885 . 

16. 58 

Jan. 

22 

17.  28 

Apr. 

29 

1886 . 

16.  00 

Feb. 

19 

16.0 

Feb. 

26 

14.  08 

Feb. 

27 

18.47 

May 

15 

1887 . 

18. 66 

Feb. 

19 

16.5 

Feb. 

23 

14.75 

Feb. 

28 

13.65 

Feb. 

16 

1888 . 

14. 10 

Mar. 

30 

13.5 

Apr. 

3 

11.  08 

Mar. 

29 

22.40 

May 

30 

1889 . 

12.0 

June 

27 

9. 17 

July 

2 

14.39 

Mav 

31 

1890 . 

13.30 

June 

25 

13.5 

Jan. 

20 

9. 83 

Jan. 

19 

14.64 

June 

30 

1891 . 

15.  00 

Apr. 

17 

12.8 

Apr. 

24 

10.  70 

Apr. 

26 

14.9 

Apr. 

26 

1892 . 

21.90 

May 

9 

18.4 

May 

15 

20.42 

May 

19 

25.  69 

May 

18 

1893 . 

19. 90 

Mar. 

15 

17.0 

Mar. 

14 

18. 10 

May 

5 

1894 . 

12.30 

Mar. 

14 

9.8 

Mar. 

20 

7.  75 

Mar. 

22 

14.4 

May 

12 

1895 . 

15.00 

Dec. 

31 

14.4 

Dec. 

22 

1896 . 

14.70 

Jan. 

1 

18. 1 

Mav 

30 

1897 . 

18.30 

Mar. 

24 

18. 33 

Apr. 

7 

23.  2 

May 

2 

1898 . 

19.30 

Mar. 

31 

19.9 

Apr. 

1 

18. 33 

Apr. 

6 

18.0 

May 

23 

1899 . 

15.  10 

Mar. 

22 

14.1 

Mar. 

14 

12. 50 

Mar. 

22 

'18.  2 

May 

25 

1900 . 

19.90 

Mar. 

16 

17.7 

Mar. 

19 

16.  08 

Mar. 

22 

17.2 

Mar. 

16 

1901 . 

17.  70 

Mar. 

31 

15.2 

Apr. 

6 

14.00 

Apr. 

10 

16.6 

Apr.  10-11 

1902 . 

21.00 

July 

22 

18.0 

July 

26 

17.30 

July 

28 

20.4 

July 

26 

1903 . 

19.30 

Mar. 

12 

17.0 

Mar. 

15 

20.60 

June 

12 

28. 65 

June 

11 

1904 . 

23.00 

Mar. 

28 

20.0 

Apr. 

4 

19.30 

Apr. 

7 

24.  07 

Apr. 

30 

1905 . 

17.90 

May 

19 

14.1 

June 

14 

13.00 

June 

17 

18.3 

June 

16 

1906 . 

15.90 

Mar. 

7 

15.6 

Apr. 

10 

15.  20 

Apr. 

13 

18.3 

Apr. 

15 

1907 . 

20.40 

Jan. 

24 

18.3 

Jan. 

29 

16. 10 

Feb. 

3 

17.9 

July 

25 

1908 . 

22.20 

Mar. 

10 

20.6 

May 

24 

19.70 

May 

26 

23.8 

June 

18 

1909 . 

17.  80 

May 

5 

15.5 

May 

10 

15. 50 

May 

12 

22.6 

July 

15 

1910 . 

17.30 

Mar. 

12 

14.8 

Jan. 

31 

12.  80 

Jan. 

27 

14.3 

May 

10 

1911 . 

15.80 

Nov. 

24 

16.9 

Oct. 

7 

15. 10 

Oct. 

7 

15.4 

Oct. 

4 

1912 . 

19.  80 

Apr. 

1 

18.8 

Apr. 

4 

19. 60 

Apr. 

10 

23.6 

Apr. 

10 

1913 . 

22.30 

Mar. 

30 

21.8 

Apr. 

5 

20. 80 

Apr. 

11 

20.5 

Apr.  11-12 

1914 . 

15.40 

Apr. 

8 

13u  4 

Apr. 

15 

10.  20 

Apr. 

16 

12.6 

June 

27 

1844 . 

26.  92 

22.  50 

26.  50 

32.  16 

• 

It  will  be  noted  that  this  flood  is  nearly  four  feet  higher  than  any 
other  flood  recorded  at  Peoria,  .7  of  a  foot  higher  at  Beardstown,  5.7 
foot  higher  at  Pearl,  and  6.5  foot  higher  than  any  other  flood  recorded  at 
Grafton.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  1913  flood  at  Beardstown  closely 
approached  the  1844  flood  in  height,  but  was  considerably  less  in  height 
at  the  other  places  given  in  the  table.  This  matter  is  considered  else¬ 
where  in  this  report. 


floods  at  Peoria  (Lower  Wagon  Bridge)  were 


The  eight 

highest 

as  follows : 

Gage 

Year. 

height. 

1904 . 

23.0 

1913 . 

22.3 

1908 . 

22.2 

These  are 

the  only 

Gage 

Year. 

height. 

1892 . 

.  .  21.9 

1867 . 

.  .  21.33 

1902 . 

.  .  21.0 

floods  exceeding  20  feet 

Gage 

Year.  height. 

1883 .  20.88 

1907 .  20.4 

on  the  gage. 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


86 


FLOOD  OF  1904. 

The  flood  of  1904  which  attained  the  greatest  height  at  Peoria 
reached  since  1844,  was  measured  at  numerous  places  upon  the  river  by 
the  U.  S.  Engineers  in  connection  with  their  report  on  the  waterway, 
and  also  by  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  in  connection  with  the  hydro¬ 
graphic  work  on  the  rivers  of  the  United  States.  Measurements  were 
made  at  the  apex  of  the  flood  as  nearly  as  possible,  and  also  at  numerous 
other  gage  heights  between  flood  stage  and  low  water,  particularly  in 
the  year  1904,  but  also  in  the  years  1903,  1905  and  1906.  Eeference 
has  previously  been  made  to  measurements  bv  Mr.  Jacob  A.  Harmon 
in  1900  and  1899. 


TABLE  NO.  26— GREATEST  MEASURED  FLOWS— FLOOD  OF  1904. 

Illinois  River. 


Location  of  discharge 
section. 

Miles 

from 

Graf¬ 

ton. 

Date  of 
meas¬ 
ure¬ 
ment. 

Gage 

height 

—feet. 

Great¬ 
est 
meas¬ 
ured 
flows— 
sec. -ft. 

By  whom 
measurement 
was  made. 

Remarks. 

Pearl— C.  &  A.  bridge . 

43.2 

Apr. 

5 

19.3 

115,  204 
109, 404 

U.  S.  Engrs.. 

.08'  below  crest  on  April  6. 

Pearl— C.  &  A.  bridge . 

43.2 

Apr. 

9 

19. 1 

. .  do . 

.28'  below  crest  on  April  6. 

Beardstown — city  bridge... 

88.8 

Mar. 

31 

19.4 

90, 647 

.  .do . 

.6'  below  crest  on  April  4. 

Beardstown— city  bridge. . . 

88.8 

Mar. 

29 

18.5 

88.924 

.  .do . 

1.5'  below  crest  on  April  4. 

Havana— city  bridge . 

119.9 

Apr. 

1 

19.9 

80, 302 

U.  S.  G.  S... 

Crest  on  April  1,  42,000  c. 
f.  s.  estimated  over  road. 

Havana— city  bridge . 

119.9 

Mar. 

29 

19.7 

76,  071 

..do . 

.2'  below  crest,  9,000  c.  f. 
s.  estimated  over  road. 

Havana— city  bridge . 

119.9 

Mar. 

28 

19.4 

74,314 

. . do . . 

.5'  below  crest. 

Havana— city  bridge . 

119.9 

Mar. 

26 

18.  1 

75, 970 

U.  S.  Engrs. . 

1.8'  below  crest. 

Havana — city  bridge . 

119.9 

Mar. 

25 

17.6 

74,  268 

. .  do . 

2.3'  below  crest. 

Peoria — P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Mar. 

28 

21.  83 

58',  370 

U.  S.  G.  s  ... 

Crest  on  March  28. 

Peoria — P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Mar. 

31 

21.48 

44, 808 

. .  do . 

.35'  below  crest. 

Peoria— P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Apr. 

2 

21.  17 

41,934 

. .  do . 

.66'  below  crest. 

Peoria — P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Apr. 

7 

20.  12 

51,  558 

.  .do . 

1.71'  below  crest. 

Peoria— P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Apr. 

9 

19.  66 

52, 367 

..do . 

2.17'  below  crest. 

Peoria— P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Mar. 

23 

19.3 

59, 333 

U.  S.  Engrs.. 

2.53'  below  crest. 

Peoria— P.  &  P.  U.  bridge 

160.7 

Mar. 

22 

18.8 

57, 538 

. .  do . 

3.03'  below  crest.  . 

Ottawa— C.  B.  &  Q.  bridge 

239.6 

Apr. 

2 

—117.3 

54,  473 

U.  S.  G.  S  ... 

1.9'  belowcrestonMar.  27. 

Ottawa— C.  B.  &  Q.  bridge 

239.6 

Mar. 

30 

—118.3 

46, 561 

. .  do . 

2.9'  belowcrestonMar.  27. 

Devine — E.  J.  &  E.  bridge. 

270.7 

Mar. 

26 

—78.47 

57,  097 

U.  S.  G.  S  ... 

Crest  on  March  26. 

Devine— E.  J.  &  E.  bridge  . 

270.  7 

Mar. 

27 

—79. 98 

50,920 

. .  do . 

1.51'  below  crest. 

♦Mouth  of  Jackson  Creek. . . 

278.4 

Mar. 

25 

—74.  1 

20,  078 

U.  S.  G.  S  ... 

.11'  below  crest  on  Mar.  26. 

*Mouth  of  Jackson  Creek.. . 

278.4 

Mar. 

25 

—74.6 

17,943 

. .  do . 

.6'  below  crest  on  Mar.  26. 

♦Mouth  of  Jackson  Creek. . . 

278.4 

Mar. 

25 

—74.8 

17,343 

..do . 

.8'  below  crest  on  Mar.  26. 

*  Flow  of  Des  Plaines  River  near  its  mouth. 


Table  No.  26  shows  a  summary  of  the  flow  measurements  made  by 
the  U.  S.  Engineers  and  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  at  and  near  the 
apex  of  the  flood  of  1904  at  several  places  throughout  the  length  of  the 
river.  It  will  be  observed  that  all  measurements  were  not  made  exactly 
at  the  apex  of  the  flood,  and  although  at  most  of  the  places,  the  measure¬ 
ments  agree  fairly  well,  stage  of  water  considered,  the  measurements 
of  the  U.  S.  Engineers  generally  give  greater  flows  than  those  of  the 
U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  and  at  Peoria,  the  difference  is  large  when 
the  stage  of  the  river  is  considered  at  the  times  of  the  respective 
measurements. 

CONCLUSIONS  OF  U.  S.  ENGINEERS. 

As  a  result  of  their  measurements,  the  U.  S.  Board  of  Engineers 
reported  the  maximum  flow  rates  of  the  1904  flood  as  follows : 


prcAvxion?  vao/' ..  j.^xr  .■ 


7"  a'Htroi'H: 


o*  at  o*  w  oe  or 


FIGURE  27. 


Elevations  above  Memphis  Datum. 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


87 


Second-feet. 


Joliet,  Des  Plaines  River .  22,000 

Channahon,  Des  Plaines  River .  22,000 

Devine,  Illinois  River .  73,000 

Ottawa,  Illinois  River .  85,000 

Peoria,  Illinois  River .  90,000 

Havana,  Illinois  River .  100,000 

Beardstown,  Illinois  River .  115,000 

Pearl,  Illinois  River..  .  . . 117,000 


PEORIA  RATING  CURVE. 

As  Peoria  is  one  of  the  best  measuring  points  on  the  river,  and  a 
long  gage  record  is  available  here,  it  becomes  of  considerable  impor¬ 
tance  to  determine  the  proper  gage  height  and  flow  relation  as  closely 
as  the  data  will  permit. 

Turning  to  Eig.  9  (the  diagram  of  rating  curves)  it  will  be  observed 
that  six  measurements  have  been  made,  resulting  in  flows  between  50,000 
and  60,000  second-feet  at  gage  heights  between  19  and  23  feet,  two  by 
the  U.  S.  Engineers,  three  by  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  and  one  by 
Mr.  Jacob  A.  Harmon.  The  one  measurement  at  the  flood  apex  made 
by  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  is  not  in  accord  with  the  five  other 
measurements  which  were  made  at  stages  from  2  to  4  feet  lower. 

As  bearing  upon  this  matter,  Mr.  J.  W.  Woermann,  C.  E.,  in  his 
report  to  the  United  States  Engineer  Office,  makes  the  following 
comment : 

“During  the  flood  stage  the  work  was  concentrated  between  Peoria  and 
the  mouth  for  the  reason  that  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  had  a  party  at 
work  taking  measurements  on  the  upper  part  of  the  river.  At  Peoria  and 
Havana,  measurements  were  taken  by  both  parties,  and  it  is  possible  to 
compare  their  results.  The  results  agree  fairly  well  for  ordinary  stages,  but 
at  high  water  our  curves  give  greater  discharges  than  those  of  the  U.  S. 
Geological  Survey.  In  my  opinion,  this  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the 
observers  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  used  small  Price  current  meters 
with  comparatively  light  weights,  and  we  know  from  our  own  observations, 
that  the  meters  were  deflected  out  of  a  vertical  position  very  materially. 
This,  of  course,  resulted  in  the  meters  recording  a  lower  velocity  than  actu¬ 
ally  existed.  It  is  believed,  therefore,  that  the  results  obtained  on  this 
survey  with  a  large  Price  current  meter  and  a  60  pound  weight  are  more 
reliable. 

“It  should  also  be  stated  that  our  measurements  were  taken  from  a  cable 
away  from  the  disturbing  influences  of  the  bridge  piers,  whereas  their  meters 
were  suspended  directly  from  the  bridges  in  taking  observations.” 

It  was  thought  that  the  above  apparent  difference '  might  be  ex¬ 
plainable  by  different  conditions  of  river  slope,  and  therefore,  Fig.  27 
was  prepared  which  shows  the  profile  of  the  flood  surface  on  various  dates 
from  March  23d  to  April  30th. 

The  measurement  of  the  U.  S.  Engineers  was  made  on  March  23d, 
at  which  time  the  fall  between  the  Lower  Wagon  Bridge  and  Pekin  was 
3.25  feet.  The  measurement  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survev  was  made 
on  March  28th,  at  which  time  the  fall  between  these  places  was  3.6  feet. 
The  gage  height  at  Peoria  was  2.8  feet  higher  on  March  28th,  and  at 
Pekin  2.45  feet  higher  on  March  28th  than  on  March  23d. 

These  figures  indicate  that  the  velocities  on  March  28th  must  have 
been  equal  to  or  slightly  greater  than  those  on  March  23d,  and  that 


ss 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

therefore,  the  difference  in  the  flow  results  cannot  be  accounted  for  on 
the  score  of  changed  river  conditions.  The  flows  undoubtedly  were  con¬ 
siderably  greater  on  the  28th  than  on  the  23d. 

There  is  a  further  reason  for  believing  that  the  flow  on  March  28th 
was  considerably  larger  than  would  be  indicated  by  the  U.  S.  Geological 
Survey  measurement.  At  another  place  in  this  report  the  flow  co¬ 
efficients  prevailing  in  the  stream  and  in  the  river  valley  are  discussed, 
and  tables  are  shown  of  the  values  prevailing  in  the  river  prism  and  in 
the  flooded  valley,  according  to  the  best  available  information  on  this 
and  other  rivers.  If  a  flow  so  small  as  that  reported  by  the  U.  S.  Geo¬ 
logical  Survev  occurred,  the  flow  coefficients  would  be  materially  smaller 
than  evidently  obtained  elsewhere  on  the  river  and  upon  other  rivers.  In 
fact,  using  reasonable  values  in  the  channel  section  proper  under  the 
cross-sections  and  slopes  prevailing,  the  channel  should  have  been  capable 
of  discharging  somewhat  more  water  than  was  measured,  without  con¬ 
sidering  any  flow  at  all  as  traveling  by  way  of  the  flooded  bottom  lands. 

For  all  of  these  reasons,  we  are  inclined  to  the  belief  that  the  max¬ 
imum  flow  rate  at  Peoria  was  about  80,000  second-feet  at  the  flood  apex, 
or  slightly  less  than  the  estimate  of  the  U.  S.  Engineers. 

At  other  places  further  down  the  river,  the  agreement  in  measure¬ 
ments  is  fairly  close.  In  the  light  of  all  the  measurements  made,  we 
would  place  the  prevailing  flow  rates  at  figures  slightly  under  the  esti¬ 
mates  of  the  U.  S.  Engineers  for  the  middle  reaches  of  the. river. 


CONCLUSIONS  AS  TO  FLOOD  RATES  IN  1904. 

In  order  that  we  may  have  concrete  figures  for  use  hereafter,  it 
seems  necessary  to  determine  the  1904  flows.  It  is  our  opinion  that  the 
figures  of  flow  set  down  in  Table  No.  27  are  most  closely  concordant 
with  all  the  available  information.  The  table  also  shows  the  drainage 
area  tributary  to  each  of  the  observation  stations,  and  the  flow  rate  in 
cubic  feet  per  second  per  square  mile. 


TABLE  NO.  27— ESTIMATED  MAXIMUM  FLOW— FLOOD  OF  1904. 

Illinois  River. 


Place. 

Date. 

Miles  above 
Grafton. 

Gage  height- 
feet. 

Estimated  flow 
-second-feet. 

Drainage  area- 
square  miles. 

Flow  in  second- 
feet  per  square 
mile. 

Remarks. 

Grafton . 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Mar. 

20 

125, 000 

27,914 
26, 182 

4.48 

Pearl . 

6 

43.2 

19.4 

115,  000 

4.40 

U.  S.  Engrs.  estimate,  117,000. 
U.  S.  Engrs.  estimate,  115,000. 
U.  S.  Engrs.  estimate,  100,000. 
U.  S.  Engrs.  estimate,  90,000. 

Beardstown . 

4 

88.8 

20.0 

105,  000 

23,444 
17,  454 
13,  479 

4.47 

Havana . 

1 

119.9 

19.9 

90, 000 

5. 15 

Peoria  ... 

23 

162.3 

21.8 

so;  000 

5.94 

Mar. 

28 

23.0 

tOttawa— C.  B.  &  Q. 
Bridge . 

Mar. 

27 

239.8 

—113.35 

85,  000 

73,  000 

10,  229 

6, 538 

975 

8.31 

Estimate  of  U.  S.  Engineers. 

Estimate  of  U.  S.  Engineers. 

Estimate  of  U.  S.  Engineers. 

Estimate  of  U.  S.  Engineers. 

•j- Devine — E.  J.  &  E. 
Bridge . 

Mar. 

25 

270.7 

—78.8 

11.  21 

♦Channahon— near  mth. 
of  Jackson  Creek . 

Mar. 

26 

278.0 

14.  1 

22,  000 

22,  000 

22.5 

♦Joliet— below  Econ.  Lt. 
&  Power  Co.  Dam _ 

Mar. 

23 

288.4 

—5.5 

975 

22.5 

*  Note. — These  places  on  Des  Plaines  River  above  head  of  Illinois  River, 
t  Sanitary  District  gages. 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


89 


FLOOD  OF  1844. 

The  flood  of  1844  as  before  stated,  reached  greater  heights  than 
any  previous  flood  at  every  place  upon  the  river.  In  order  that  some 
idea  might  be  formed  as  to  the  rate  prevailing  during  this  flood,  some 
comparisons  have  been  made  relative  to  the  comparative  cross-sections, 
slopes  and  mean  depth  prevailing  in  1844,  and  in  1904  under  the  meas¬ 
ured  flood. 

It  has  been  demonstrated  that  in  the  flow  of  rivers,  the  average 
velocity  and  hence  the  delivery,  will  vary  approximately  as  the  cross- 
sectional  area,  the  square  root  of  the  mean  depth  and  the  square  root  of 
the  slope.  This  relation  holds  so  long  as  the  retarding  effect  of  the  sur¬ 
faces  over  which  the  water  passes  remains  constant. 

It  is  not  possible  to  determine  simultaneously  gage  readings  for  the 
flood  of  1844.  The  best  that  can  be  done  is  to  reason  from  the  high- 
water  marks  which  are  determined  with  fair  accuracy  at  numerous  places 
and  to  compare  them  with  similar  highwater  marks  in  the  measured 
flood  of  1904. 


The  high  water  marks  of  1844  are  fairly  well  determined  at  Peoria 
and  at  Pekin,  points  about  ten  miles  apart.  The  figures  bearing  upon 
this  point  are  as  follows : 


» 

Flood  of 

Flood  of 

1904. 

1844. 

Average  cross-sectional  area,  square  feet.  .  . 

.  . .  79,020 

111,220 

Mean  depth — feet . 

.  .  .  12.2 

15.85 

Fall  Peoria  to  Pekin — feet . 

.  .  .  3.6 

1.7 

Square  root  of  mean  depth . 

.  .  .  3.50 

3.98 

Square  root  of  fall . 

Batio  of  cross-sections . 

...  1.90 

1.40 

1.30 

Batio  of  depth,  square  roots . 

1.14 

Batio  of  fall,  square  roots . 

.69 

Product  of  ratios  net  relation .  1.10 

These  figures  so  far  as  they  go,  would  indicate  that  the  1844  flood 
was  about  10  per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904  in  the  vicinity  of 
Peoria. 

A  similar  comparison  between  LaGrange  and  Pearl,  a  distance  of 
33.2  miles,  in  which  the  fall  was  2.3  feet  in  1844,  and  6.38  feet  in  1904, 
indicates  that  at  this  place  the  flood  rate  of  1844  was  about  32  per  cent 
greater  than  in  1904. 

A  comparison  over  a  longer  stretch  of  river,  namely,  from  Beards- 
town  to  Grafton,  upon  the  same  basis,  would  indicate  a  quite  materially 
higher  ratio  than  the  above,  but  it  is  believed  that  not  much  reliance 
can  be  placed  on  the  extreme  highwater  slope  indications  so  near  to  the 
Mississippi  Biver,  the  heights  at  Grafton  being  very  largely  governed  by 
agencies  outside  of  the  Illinois  Biver. 

The  above  comparisons  take  no  account  of  the  influence  of  increased 
depth  and  velocity,  upon  the  frictional  resistance  of  the  water  in  passage. 
These  factors  would  tend  to  increase  the  apparent  flows  in  1844  by  the 
amount  of  about  25  per  cent.  (Effect  of  these  factors  on  value  of  C  in 
Rutter’s  formula.)  The  comparison  further  takes  no  account  of  the 


90 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


difference  in  skin  friction  that  may  have  existed  (as  covered  by  the  value 
of  n  in  Ivutters  formula).  This  would  tend  to  reduce  the  comparative 
flow  rates  in  1844,  for  much  of  the  bottom  land  has  been  cleared  of 
trees  and  brush,  especially  in  the  lower  river  in  the  year  of  1904.  Com¬ 
putations  seem  to  show  that  about  one-half  the  flood  passed  by  way  of 
the  bottom  lands  in  the  lower  part  of  the  river  in  1904,  at  which  time 
little  had  been  done  in  the  way  of  levee  construction.  This  land  was 
probably  a  jungle  in  1844,  highly  resistant  to  passage  of  water. 

The  river  channel  proper  was  probably  in  much  the  same  condition 
in  1844  and  1904,  and  if  we  disregard  the  water  passing  over  land,  and 
consider  the  channel  section  of  the  river  only,  the  hydraulic  elements 
would  indicate  an  excess  flow  rate  in  1844  of  about  14  per  cent  in  the 
reach  between  Peoria  and  Pekin,  and  in  the  reach  from  La  Grange  to 
Pearl,  the  channel  flow  rates  would  be  indicated  as  approximately  equal. 

The  slopes  between  Pekin  and  Havana  would  seem  to  indicate  higher 
flow  rates  in  1844  than  any  of  the  above,  unless  it  can  be  shown  that  the 
land  was  wooded  to  a  much  greater  extent  in  1844,  and  upon  this  point 
we  have  no  information.  The  land  at  the  present  time  has  perhaps  the 
highest  percentage  of  trees  and  brush  of  any  reach  on  the  river.  Between 
Peoria  and  the  Great  Bend,  the  high  flows  are  also  indicated,  but  the 
flood  marks  are  not  so  numerous  or  well  authenticated. 

It  is  believed  that  there  is  good  reason  for  the  conclusion  that  in 
the  lower  river,  say  below  Beardstown,  the  flow  rate  in  1844  at  no  time 
was  materially  greater  than  the  rate  observed  in  1904.  In  the  upper 
river,  the  indication  is  less  clear  and  the  flood  rates  of  1844  probably 
exceeded  those  in  1904  by  not  less  than  15  per  cent,  and  possibly  more. 

FLOOD  OF  1913. 

The  flood  of  1913  produced  a  maximum  flow  rate  at  Peoria  about  10 
per  cent  less  than  the  flood  of  1904.  In  the  lower  river  at  Beardstown 
it  reached  a  height  within  .7  of  a  foot  of  the  1844  flood,  but  it  traversed 
a  river  differing  greatly  from  that  existing  in  1904  and  previously,  par¬ 
ticularly  between  Beardstown  and  Grafton.  The  flow  cross-section  was 
greatly  reduced  on  account  of  the  levee  construction.  For  reaches  of 
considerable  length,  the  water  was  confined  between  agricultural  levees 
and  the  high  bank  on  the  western  side  of  the  river,  closely  approximating 
the  channel  conditions  in  the  main  stream  here  and  elsewhere. 

We  have  elsewhere  herein  demonstrated  the  values  for  coefficients  of 
flow  generally  prevailing  in  the  channel  sections  of  the  Illinois  Biver, 
and  if  these  values  are  applied  to  the  channel  sections  and  slopes  pre¬ 
vailing  below  Beardstown  in  the  flood  of  1913,  it  is  indicated  that  the 
maximum  flow  rates  during  this  flood  were  closely  approximate  to  the 
measured  rates  in  the  flood  of  1904.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that  in 
1913  as  in  1904,  a  large  increment  was  furnished  by  the  Sangamon 
Biver,  and  the  rates  thus  produced  were  probably  accentuated  by  exten¬ 
sive  operations  in  channel  straightening  in  the  Sangamon  Biver  bottoms 
completed  prior  to  1913,  that  tended  to  reduce  the  natural  storage  in  the 
valley  of  the  Sangamon  Biver,  and  somewhat  increased  the  rates  of  flow 
delivered  to  the  Illinois  at  Beardstown. 

All  these  matters  seem  to  indicate  that  the  maximum  flood  rate  in 
1913  was  about  10  per  cent  less  than  the  rate  in  1904  in  the  vicinity  of 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


91 


Peoria,  and  substantially  equal  to  the  1904  flood  rates  at  Beardstown 
and  below. 

THE  PROBABLE  FLOODS  OF  THE  FUTURE. 

i 

It  becomes  necessary,  if  we  may  design  works  that  will  safely  stand 
the  floods  hereafter,  to  estimate  as  accurately  as  we  can  the  flood  rates 
that  the  future  is  likely  to  produce.  In  estimates  of  this  kind  we  can 
do  no  more  than  to  examine  the  past  and  to  assume  that  what  has 
occurred  before  may  occur  again,  and  referring  particularly  to  the 
Illinois  River,  it  will  not  be  sufficient  to  base  our  conclusions  on  the 
experience  of  this  river  on  which  continuous  records  cover  only  about 
fifty  years.  Due  weight  must  be  given  to  the  experience  on  other  rivers 
having  a  longer  record,  for  experience  has  shown  that  the  peculiar  com¬ 
bination  of  circumstances  that  produce  a  deluge  and  flood  materially 
greater  than  the  ordinary  large  flood,  may  occur  on  any  stream  at  any 
time,  and  where  records  are  sufficiently  lengthy,  it  is  shown  that  the 
intervals  between  such  occurrences  may  be  very  great,  in  fact,  so  long  as 
centuries,  or,  the  great  floods  may  follow  one  another  closely.  The 
experience  in  this  regard  upon  some  streams  of  long  record  is  instructive. 

GREAT  FLOODS. 

Upon  the  Mississippi,  the  greatest  flood  since  the  occupation  of  the 
valley  occurred  in  1844.  The  flood  second  in  magnitude  occurred  in 
1785.  There  was  an  interval  of  fifty-nine  years  between  these  floods  and 
in  the  seventy-one  years  since  1844,  this  flood  has  not  been  closely 
approached. 

The  flood  of  1883  on  the  Ohio  River  at  Cincinnati  was  the  greatest 
flood  up  to  that  time  since  the  river  has  been  known  to  the  white  man. 
The  following  year  a  slightly  greater  flood  occurred  which  has  not  since 
been  equaled.  At  Cairo  on  the  same  river,  the  record  flood  occurred  in 
1883.  It  was  slightly  exceeded  in  1912,  and  again  exceeded  in  1913. 

The  late  Mr.  Emil  Kuichling,  C.E.,  quotes  the  official  investigation 
into  the  floods  of  the  river  Seine  at  Paris,  and  states  that  in  observations 
covering  400  years,  the  greatest  flood  occurred  March  1,  1658.  The 
flood  second  in  magnitude  occurred  January  28,  1910.  This  flood  almost 
equaled  the  former  great  flood  and  was  estimated  at  83,500  second-feet 
on  16,860  square  miles,  a  rate  of  about  5  second-feet  per  square  mile, 
which  is  approximately  equal  to  the  flood  of  1904  upon  the  Illinois 
River.  The  flood  third  in  magnitude  occurred  December  26,  1740;  it 
was  slightly  smaller  than  the  flood  last  above  mentioned. 

Mr.  Kuichling  also  quotes  the  experience  on  the  River  Danube  at 
Vienna,  on  which  the  highest  water  from  well  attested  flood  marks 
occurred  in  the  year  1501.  The  flood  was  roughly  estimated  at  503,200 
second-feet  on  39,200  square  miles,  a  flood  rate  of  about  13  second-feet 
per  square  mile,  numerous  floods  have  since  occurred  upon  this  river, 
but  none  larger  than  307,800  second-feet.  This  is  over  25  per  cent  less 
than  the  discharge  in  the  great  flood  of  1501. 

The  above  citations  emphasizes  the  value  of  long  records  and  the 
chance  for  serious  error  in  the  drawing  of  conclusions  from  a  short 
record. 


92 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


FLOOD  BATES  ON  OTHER  STREAMS. 

As  throwing  light  upon  what  may  occur  in  the  valley  of  the  Illinois 
River,  we  have  collected  such  data  as  we  could  secure  relative  to  the 
maximum  flood  flow  rates  that  have  been  observed  on  the  streams  in 
and  ad  jacent  to  the  State  of  Illinois. .  We  show  this  data  in  table  No.  28. 
These  streams  are  all  much  smaller  than  the  Illinois  River,  and  as 
would  be  expected,  show  flood  rates  per  unit  of  drainage  area  consider¬ 
ably  higher  than  the  rates  on  the  Illinois  River.  The  streams  listed 
include  Indiana,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin,  and  the  flow  rates  vary  from 
7  to  31  second-feet  per  square  mile. 

TABLE  NO.  28— MAXIMUM  FLOOD  FLOWS  ON  STREAMS  IN  AND  ADJACENT  TO 

ILLINOIS. 


River. 


Place  of  measure¬ 
ment. 


OS 

<D 


03 

<X> 

bn 

c3 


g 

H 

<3 


Date. 


ft 


i  ® 

O  _L 

53  a 
o 


T) 

O 

o 


I  <D- 
>.® 


o 

o 

o 


® 
u 
03 
P 
®  O' 

cn  Vi 


Authority. 


Des  Plaines  River.. 

Grand  River . 

Kaskaskia . 

Kaskaskia . 

Kaskaskia . 

Kaskaskia . 

Wabash  River . 

White  River . 

Wisconsin . 

Grand  River . 

Huron . 

Black . 

Lake  Geneva . 

Calumet . 

FLOOD  RATES  DUR¬ 
ING  GREAT  FLOOD 
OF  19 13,  IN  OHIO. 

Ottawa  River . 

Muskingum  River. . 

Ohio  River . 

Scioto . 

Olentangy . 

Lower  Scioto . 

Wabash . 


Riverside,  Ill . 

Grand  Rapids,  Mich. 

New  Athens,  Ill . 

*Carlyle,  Ill . 

Shelbyville,  Ill . 

Areola,  Ill . 

Logansport,  Ind . 

Shoals,  Ind . 

Kilbourn,  Wis . 

Lansing,  Mich . 


June  1892 

Mar.  27,  1904 
May  1908 

May  1908 

May  1908 

May  1908 

Mar.  27,  1904 
Mar.  29,  1904 

13, 300 
39, 400 
54,  440 
19,946 
10, 580 
3, 868 
56,  880 
79, 950 

March  1904 

25,000 

July  7,  1902 

5,510 

23,  060 

'290 

Mar.  7,  1908 

11,  000 

Mar.  13, 1913 

12,  000 

Mar.  13,  1913 

250,  000 

Mar.  13, 1913 

555,  200 

Mar.  25,  1913 

80,  000 

Mar.  25,  1913 

60,  000 

Mar.  25,  1913 

140,  000 

Mar.  13, 1913 

136,  000 

Neillsville,  Wis . . 
Lake  Geneva,  Ill. 
Riverdale . 


Lima,  Ohio . 

Marietta,  Ohio. . 

. .  do . 

Columbus,  Ohio. 
Columbus,  Ohio. 
Columbus,  Ohio. 
Lafayette,  Ind . . 


633 
4,900 
5, 200 
2,705 
1,040 
390 
3, 163 
4,900 
8,000 
1,230 
757 
675 
19.4 
693 


140 
7, 850 
34, 700 
1,032 
520 
1,570 
7,300 


21.0 
8.  04 
10.45 
7.37 
10. 18 
9.92 
17. 98 
16.33 
10.0 
20.3 
7.3 
34. 1 
15.0 
15.8 


86 

32 

16 

77 

115 

89 

18.6 


T.  T.  Johnston. 

W.  S.  No.  147. 

U. S.G.S.andl.  I.C. 
U.  S.  G.  S.  andl.I.  C. 
U.S.G.S.andl.  I.C. 
U.S.G.S.andl. I.C. 
fW.  S.  Nos.  147  and  128. 
tW.  S.  Nos.  147  and  123. 
D.  W.  Mead- 

W.  S.  No.  129. 

L.  E.  Cooley. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

L.  K.  Sherman. 


W.  J.  Sherman. 

W.  J.  Sherman 
W.  J.  Sherman. 
Alvord  &  Burdick. 
Alvord  &.  Burdick. 
Alvord  &  Burdick. 
Rough  Est.,  Sackett. 


*  Estimated  that  without  the  storage  of  the  bottomlands,  i.e.  with  the  bottoms  protected  by  levees, 
the  unit  rate  would  have  been  25  second-feet  per  square  mile.  Report  of  J.  A.  Harman,  Kaskaskia  River 
Improvement. 

t  Largest  flood  since  1885  and  probably  longer. 

The  same  table  also  shows  the  flood  rates  resulting  from  the  greatest 
rainstorm  of  record  that  occurred  in  Ohio  in  March,  1913,  accomplishing 
the  great  devastation  at  Dayton,  Columbus  and  other  Ohio  cities.  It 
will  be  observed  that  the  Ohio  River  at  Marietta,  with  a  drainage  area 
slightly  larger  than  the  Illinois,  produced  a  flood  rate  of  16  second- 
feet  per  square  mile,  nearly  three  times  the  maximum  recorded  rate  on 
the  Illinois.  It  must  be  remembered  however,  that  the  tributary  water¬ 
shed  in  the  western  Pennsylvania  mountains  is  a  water  producer  differ¬ 
ing  greatly  from  the  Illinois  prairies.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  flow 
rates  on  the  smaller  streams  range  from  32  to  115  second-feet  per 
square  mile. 

Fig.  28  shows  in  diagrammatic  form,  a  composite  representation  of 
the  data  shown  upon  Table  No.  28  also  the  maximum  flow  rates  upon 


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Flood  Flow  -  5ec,  Ft  per  Sq,  Mile 


FIGURE  28. 


Diagram  Showing  Relation  of 

Drainage  Area  %  Flood  Flow 

on  Rivers  of  the  Eastern  United  States 

Considering  Only  Well  Defined  Maximum  Floods 


Indicates  max,  -flow  rates  in  Illinois  River  Food  of  1901- (agreed- flood), 

Indicafes  the  flow  rates  in  the  Ohio  Floods  of  1913  on  the  Olenfcingy  (I), 
ociotoCE),  Lower  Scioto  (5\and  Miami  (4),  The  first  three  are 

maximum  04  hour  rales,  The  Miami  flood  is  a  crest  rode  bud  was 
probably  nearly  the  same  for  24  hours. 

Indicates  great  floods  in  Illinois  and  adjacent  territory. 

Indicates  maximum  24  hour  rates  on  all  rivers  easf  oft he  Mississippi 
where  continuous  ( records  have  been  kept  for  10  years  or  more. 
From  data  compiled  by  Weston  E,  Fuller,  M. Am,  doc.  C,E. 

K,  (Curve)  Represents  Kuichlina  formula  for  occasional  maxi  mums, 
w  "  "  "  »  "  rare  •« 

These  curves  are  not  intended  for  application  to  areas  over 
5  000  sq.  miles  but  are  extended  for  comparative  purposes. 

(Curve)  Represents  Murphy  formula  intended  to  apply  to  areas  of 
less  than  10,000  square  miles, 


> — 

nr 


n 

: 


Ka 


-  — _ 


*  - 


0  000 


Drainage 


Area 


15000 

in  Square 


20000 

Mileg 


25  000 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


93 


a  large  number  of  other  American  streams  lying  east  of  the  Mississippi, 
and  for  purposes  of  comparison,  the  greatest  recorded  flood  rates  on  the 
Illinois  Biver  are  shown.  It  is  the  purpose  of  this  diagram  to  illustrate 
the  wide  variation  in  maximum  flow  rates  of  the  streams  of  the  eastern 
United  States,  and  to  further  illustrate  the  effect  of  the  size  of  the  water¬ 
shed  contributing  to  the  stream  flow. 

The  diagram  is  platted  with  drainage  area  in  square  miles  laid  off 
horizontally,  and  maximum  flood  flows  in  cubic  feet  per  second  per 
square  mile,  vertically.  Each  spot  represents  an  observation  on  some 
stream,  and  is  platted  opposite  to  the  size  of  its  drainage  area  and  its 
flow  rate. 

Mr.  Emil  Kuichling  in  connection  with  his  report  on  the  New  York 
State  Barge  Canal,  platted  similar  data  for  some  of  these  streams  and 
others,  and  drew  curves  of  relation  which  are  reproduced  on  Fig.  28 
marked  “K-2”  and  “K-l”  on  the  diagram,  indicating  the  flood  rates 
upon  drainage  areas  of  various  sizes  likely  to  occur  rarely,  and  occasion¬ 
ally,  respectively.  The  Murphy  formula  for  streams  of  the  northeastern 
United  States  is  also  represented  by  the  curve  line  marked  “MY  The 
Kuichling  formula  was  intended  to  apply  to  drainage  areas  not  larger 
than  5,000  square  miles,  and  the  Murphy  formula  to  areas  up  to  10,000 
square  miles.  Curves  “M”  and  “K-l”  have,  however,  been  extended  to 
cover  the  total  drainage  area  of  the  Illinois  Biver  for  comparative 
purposes,  and  seem  to  fit  conditions  fairly  well. 

It  will  be  observed  that  1913  floods  on  the  Ohio  streams  equaled,  or, 
in  one  case,  materially  exceeded  the  curve  of  rare  floods.  It  will  further 
be  seen  that  the  Illinois  Biver  has  the  lowest  flood  rates  of  any  of  the 
great  rivers  recorded,  and  in  its  upper  reaches  where  the  drainage  area 
is  small,  it  is  well  below  the  average  of  streams  having  a  like  drainage 
area. 

ARTIFICIAL  CONDITIONS  AFFECTING  FLOOD  BATES. 

At  the  outset  it  will  perhaps  be  desirable  to  mention  some  of  the 
artificial  causes  that  tend  to  affect  flood  flows,  particularly  as  these 
causes  have  been  much  discussed  of  late,  and  the  operation  of  these 
causes  hereafter  might  obviously  have  a  tendency  to  affect  conclusions 
made  at  this  time. 

The  drainage  of  low  land  has  affected  flood  flows  in  two  ways.  By 
draining  the  swamps  wdiich  naturally  were  more  or  less  covered  with 
standing  water,  these  natural  flood  water  storage  reservoirs  have  been 
destroyed.  This  would  have  a  tendency  to  increase  flood  rates  particu¬ 
larly  on  the  adjacent  streams.  Upon  the  other  hand,  the  reclamation 
of  swamp  land  has  permitted  the  soil  to  act  as  a  receptacle  for  storage 
that  was  not  available  when  the  land  was  flooded  with  water.  This  tends 
to  counteract  the  direct  effect  of  the  drainage.  The  tiling  of  rolling 
farm  land,  an  extensive  practice  in  Illinois,  has  probably  had  very  little 
effect  on  floods  one  way  or  the  other;  if  anything,  the  tendency  is  to 
reduce  the  effects  of  the  flood  delivered  to  the  streams. 

The  question  of  deforestation  recently  much  discussed,  is  of  small 
concern  on  the  watershed  of  the  Illinois.  The  majority  of  the  acreage 
has  always  been  prairie  land. 


94 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


The  reclamation  of  bottom  lands  on  the  tributaries  of  the  Illinois, 
is  a  more  important  effect.  Considerable  work  has  already  been  done 
on  the  Sangamon  in  the  way  of  straightening  the  channel  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  decreasing  the  frequency  of  overflow,  and  in  case  of  flooding, 
removing  the  water  from  the  bottom  lands  more  quickly.  This  practice 
tends  to  rob  the  bottom  lands  of  their  ability  to  store  flood  waters;  to 
increase  the  delivery  rate  of  the  tributaries,  and  hence  if  the  practice  is 
extensively  pursued,  to  materially  increase  the  rate  at  which  flood  water 
is  delivered  in  the  valley  of  the  Illinois  River.  As  the  Illinois  River 
is  a  great  stream,  and  most  of  the  tributaries  are  comparatively  small, 
the  dangers  arising  from  this  work  will  depend  upon  the  extent  to  which 
such  reclamation  works  are  built.  There  are  a  number  of  tributaries  of 
the  Illinois  on  which  works  of  this  kind  are  suggested,  but  the  matter 
has  not  been  sufficiently  investigated  as  yet  to  form  an  intelligent  opinion 
as  to  how  extensive  these  works  will  ultimately  be,  and  of  the  effect 
they  may  produce  upon  the  flood  deliveries  of  the  Illinois  River. 

So  far  as  the  artificial  drainage  of  swamp  land  is  concerned,  it  is 
not  probable  that  future  operations  will  be  of  sufficient  moment  to 
materially  change  the  rates  that  have  prevailed  in  the  last  twenty  years. 

NATURAL  CONDITIONS  AFFECTING  FLOOD  RATES. 

It  must  not  be  presumed  that  conditions  are  likely  to  occur  that 
will  produce  flood  rates  upon  the  Illinois  River  equal  to  those  of  the 
recent  Ohio  floods.  There  is  no  doubt  that  although  the  rainstorm  pro¬ 
ducing  those  floods  may  occur  again,  although  such  a  storm  never  before 
visited  the  eastern  United  States,  and  may  center  on  the  Illinois  River 
watershed,  even  so,  the  watershed  of  this  stream  could  not  produce  the 
rates  that  occurred  in  Ohio,  for  the  watershed  is  too  large,  the  stream 
valleys  too  wide,  and  the  gradients  are  too  flat.  Even  so,  very  much 
larger  floods  might  be  produced,  for  only  the  edge  of  the  March,  1913, 
storm  covered  the  watershed  of  the  Illinois  River,  and  a  great  flood  was 
produced  below  Peoria.  Had  this  storm  been  centered  on  the  Illinois 
River,  there  is  little  doubt  but  that  a  record  flood  would  have  resulted. 

Upon  the  great  rivers  such  as  the*  Ohio,  Mississippi  and  Missouri, 
the  melting  snows  have  an  important  effect  upon  the  flood  rates,  and 
the  greatest  floods  have  resulted  through  a  warm  rain  on  snow,  supple¬ 
mented  by  torrential  rains  in  the  lower  reaches  of  the  watersheds 
affected.  The  snow  conditions  on  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  are  particu¬ 
larly  important  by  reason  of  the  great  depth  that  sometimes  covers  the 
ground  in  Pennsylvania,  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota. 

The  snowfall  is  of  less  importance  on  the  smaller  streams,  on  which 
the  greatest  floods  usually  result  from  torrential  rains,  although  some¬ 
times  supplemented  by  snow  lying  on  the  ground.  These  smaller  drain¬ 
age  areas  come  within  the  compass  of  a  much  more  concentrated  rainfall 
than  is  possible  on  the  watersheds  of  the  great  rivers,'  on  which  rain¬ 
storm  floods  are  usually  produced  by  a  number  of  storms  each  covering 
only  a  part  of  the  watershed,  or  the  series  of  recurring  storms  in  a 
measure  following  the  flood  waters  down  through  the  drainage  area. 

The  condition  of  the  ground  surface  has  very  much  to  do  with  the 
maximum  runoff  rates,  thus,  a  ground  that  is  already  saturated  with 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


95 


a  moderate  rainfall,  is  in  a  condition  to  deliver  a  succeeding  torrential 
rain  almost  entire  to  the  water  courses,  and  more  important  and  of  more 
frequent  occurrence,  the  frozen  ground  of  late  winter  and  early  spring 
produces  a  similar  result.  Thus,  we  almost  always  have  our  floods  in 
this  latitude  in  February,  March  or  April.  This  is  true  upon  the  Illinois, 
except  in  the  lower  part  of  the  river  where  the  flood  is  influenced  by 
the  Mississippi  and  Missouri  Fivers  which  may  deliver  their  flood  waters 
as  late  as  May  or  June. 

Thus,  in  so  far  as  rainfall  and  ground  surface  conditions  are  con¬ 
cerned,  the  streams  of  the  central  and  northeastern  United  States  are 
much  alike,  and  the  principal  differences  in  unit  runoff  must  be  looked 
for  in  topography.  A  double  effect  is  here  produced,  for  the  flat 
gradients  not  only  tend  to  low  delivery  rates,  but  also  tend  to  store  the 
flood  waters,  thus  making  delivery  to  the  streams  over  a  longer  period 
and  at  smaller  rates. 

The  effects  of  topography  are  much  too  complicated  to  give  us 
directly  valuable  information  as  to  probable  flood  rates,  or  even  to 
make  definite  comparisons  between  watersheds.  An  effort  has  been  made 
however,  to  accomplish  this  purpose  in  another  way,  namely,  by  ascer¬ 
taining  the  average  flood  flows  of  our  various  streams  and  comparing  the 
great  floods  on  the  streams,  each  as  a  ratio  of  the  average  flood  on  the 
same  stream. 


COMPAKISON  BY  FATIOS. 

This  method  of  comparing  flood  flow  rates  was  first  suggested  in  a 
paper  by  Weston  E.  Fuller,  read  before  the  American  Society  of  Civil 
Engineers,  October  15,  1913.  Mr.  Fuller  has  done  a  great  service  to 
the  hydraulics  of  rivers  in  this  suggestion,  and  in  assembling  the  flood 
flow  data  on  all  our  American  streams,  in  such  form  that  intelligent 
comparison  thereof  can  be  made. 

Table  Xo.  29  has  been  prepared  largely  from  his  data,  but  with  a 
few  additions,  including  all  the  rivers  of  the  United  States  on  which 
flow  records  are  available,  covering  ten  years  or  more. 


TABLE  NO.  29— MAXIMUM  (24-HOUR)  FLOOD  RATES— ALL  STREAMS  OF  UNITED 
STATES  HAVING  RECORD  OF  TEN  YEARS  OR  MORE. 

(Compiled  from  paper  on  Flood  Flows  by  Weston  E.  Fuller,  M.  Am.  Soc.  C.  E.) 


Stream. 

Place  measured. 

Drainage 
area — 
square 
miles. 

Length 

of 

record 
— years. 

4 

Average 
yearly 
Food 
flow — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 
mum 
flood — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 

mum 

flood 

per 

square 
mile — 
second- 
feet. 

Ratio 
of  maxi¬ 
mum  to 
average 
flood. 

NEW  ENGLAND 
STREAMS. 

Connecticut  River . 

Merrimac . 

Androscoggin . 

Connecticut . 

Pemigewasset . 

Cobb  oss  econtec . 

Kennebec . 

F  omer . 

Hartford . 

Lawrence . 

Rumford  Falls . 

Holyoke . 

Plymouth . 

Gardiner . 

Water  ville . 

Holyoke . 

10,  234 
4,638 
2,090 

8, 144 

615 

240 

4,  270 

13 

104 

56 

40 

26 

24 

21 

18 

14 

113. 400 
43,400 
24, 900 
73,  000 
16,  800 
1,850 
59, 600 
434 

205,  000 
82, 150 
55, 500 
115,  000 
30, 640 
3,  275 
151,  000 
788 

20.0 

17. 7 
26.6 
14.2 

49.7 

13.6 
35.4 

60.6 

1.81 
1.90 
2.23 
1.58 
1.82 
1.77 
2. 53 
1.82 

96 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER 


TABLE  NO.  29 — Continued. 


Stream. 

Place  measured. 

Drainage 
area — 
square 
miles. 

Length 

of 

record 

—years. 

Average 
yearly 
flood 
flow — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 

mum 

flood— 

second- 

feet. 

Maxi¬ 

mum 

flood 

per 

square 
mile — 
second- 
feet. 

Ratio 
of  maxi¬ 
mum  to 
average 
flood. 

Penobscot  (West) . 

Millinockett. . . 

1.S80 

11 

14,  000 

24, 250 

12.9 

1.  74 

Penobscot.....  . . 

West  Enfield . 

6,600 

1, 570 

11 

60',  630 
13, 720 
31,700 

93',  400 
19, 890 
49. 700 

14. 1 

1. 54 

Kennebec . 

The  Forks . 

11 

12.7 

1.45 

Connecticut . 

Or  ford . 

3' 305 

11 

15.0 

1.57 

HUDSON  RIVER 

STREAMS. 

Hudson . 

Mechanics  ville . 

4,500 

2, 800 
3,440 

23 

44.500 
32,900 

50. 500 

108,  000 
43,900 

24.0 

2.42 

Hudson . 

Ft.  Edward . 

13 

15.7 

1.33 

Mohawk . . 

Dunsbach  Ferry. . . 

12 

84,200 

24.4 

1.66 

East  Canada  Creek.... 

Dolgeville . 

256 

12 

5, 950 

12, 150 

47. 5 

2.04 

MIDDLE  ATLANTIC 
STREAMS. 

Passaic . 

Dundee  Dam . 

823 

34 

10,600 

4,620 

27, 995 

34.0 

2. 64 

Neshaminy  Creek . 

Low  Forks . 

139 

27 

9,  012 

64.8 

1.95 

Perkiomen . 

Frederick . 

152 

27 

5,020 

8',  769 

57.7 

1.75 

Tohickon  Creek . 

Point  nleasant . 

102 

25 

4,820 
276,  000 

8;  650 
593,  000 

84.8 

1. 80 

Susquehanna . 

Harrisburg . 

24,000 

21 

24.7 

2. 15 

Susquehanna  (West) . . 

Williamsport . 

5;  640 

17 

104,300 

164, 100 

29.2 

1.58 

Potomac . 

Port  of  Rocks . 

9, 650 

660 

17 

114,  000 

218, 700 

22.7 

1.92 

Monocacy . 

Frederick . 

15 

14,800 

20,460 

31.0 

1.38 

Delaware . 

Riegelsville . 

6,430 

1,920 

3,000 

9, 810 

15 

99,000 

30,400 

176,900 

27. 5 

1.79 

Schuylkill . 

Philadelphia . 

14 

82, 156 

42.8 

2.  70 

Shenandoah . 

Millville . 

13 

44,800 

139,  700 

46. 5 

3. 12 

Susquehanna . 

Wilkes-Barre . 

12 

123, 800 
143,  250 
6,890 
25, 970 
63, 500 
•  39, 100 

217,  700 

22.2 

1.76 

Susquehanna . 

Danville . 

11, 100 

12 

304, 800 

27.5 

2. 13 

Patapsco . 

Woodstock . 

'251 

12 

11, 100 

44.3 

1.61 

Chenango . 

Binghamton . 

1,530 

11 

35, 900 

23. 5 

1.38 

JuanitaT . 

Newport . 

3',  480 
2,400 

11 

118,  000 

34.0 

1.86 

Susquehanna . 

Binghamton . 

10 

63,  000 

26.2 

1.  61 

SOUTH  ATLANTIC 
STREAMS. 

2.  71 

Savannah . 

Augusta . 

7,300 

2,420 

4,900 

20 

114,300 

309, 930 

42.4 

Ocmulgee . 

Macon . 

18 

32,  550 

50, 860 

21.0 

1. 56 

Black  Warrior . 

Tuscaloosa . 

17 

101,  000 

141,  000 

28.8 

1.40 

James . 

Buchanan . 

2, 660 
4,493 

15 

40, 846 

62,  000 

23.3 

1.52 

Cape  Fear . 

Favetteville . 

15 

52,  800 

90, 650 

20.2 

1.72 

Yadkin . 

Salisbury . 

3,400 

3, 300 

7,  060 

762 

15 

62, 192 

130,000 

38.2 

2. 10 

Chattahoochee . 

West  Point . 

14 

48, 483 

88,  630 

26.9 

1.83 

Coosa . 

Riverside . 

14 

57, 562 

75,  800 

10.7 

1.32 

Broad  of  Georgia . 

Carlton,  Ga . 

13 

20,428 

47,  200 

61.9 

2.31 

Oconee . 

Dublin . 

4, 180 

13 

29,  013 

37,  000 

8.8 

1.27 

James . 

Cartersville . 

6,  230 

12 

61,658 

84, 800 

13.6 

1.37 

Coosawatte. . . . 

Carters,  Ga . 

531 

12 

12, 500 

17,  700 

33.3 

1.42 

Alabama . 

Selma. . . 

15,400 

604 

12 

114,  028 

146,000 

9.5 

1.28 

Etowah . 

Canton,  Ga . 

12 

13,440 

19,  000 

31.  5 

1.42 

Broad  of  Carolina . 

Alston,  S.  C . 

4,610 

11 

76,400 

131,  000 

28.5 

1.72 

Oostanaula . 

Resaca,  Ga . 

1,610 

11 

23, 661 

39,  200 

24.4 

1.66 

James,  N.  Fk . 

Glasgow,  Va . 

831 

10 

16,  600 

37,  250 

44.9 

2.25 

Tugalloo . 

Madison,  S.  C . 

593 

10 

15,301 

21, 860 

36.9 

1.  43 

Flint . 

Woodbury,  Ga . 

990 

10 

10, 434 

30, 250 

30.6 

1. 84 

Tallapoosa . 

Sturdevant,  Ala _ 

2,  500 

10 

36, 247 

59, 100 

23.7 

1.63 

Tombigbee . 

Columbus,  Miss ... . 

4, 440 

10 

34,476 

50, 420 

11.3 

1.46 

OHIO  RIVER  BASIN. 

480,000 

20.2 

1. 63 

Ohio . 

Wheeling . 

23, 800 
21,400 
2,450 
1,260 

50 

294,  000 

Tennessee _ 

Chattanooga . 

21 

231,000 

409, 520 

19.1 

1.77 

♦Miami . 

Davton . 

21 

50,  000 

246, 000 

10.0 

4.92 

Clarion. 

Clair  on,  Pa . 

20 

23,280 

39,300 

31.2 

1.  68 

Upper  Scioto . 

Olentangv . 

Near  Columbus. . .. 

1,032 

16 

19,300 

68,  000 

65.8 

3.52 

Columbus . 

520 

16 

14, 500 

51,  000 

98.2 

3*  52 

Lower  Scioto . 

.do . 

1, 570 

16 

33,  800 

119,  000 

75.  7 

3.52 

Little  Tennessee . 

Judson,  N.  C . 

675 

14 

25,  800 

57, 140 

84.8 

2.22 

New . 

Radford,  Va . 

2, 720 

13 

64,  200 

137,  760 

50.5 

2. 15 

Greenbrier . 

Alderson,  W.  Va.. . 

L340 

14 

36, 900 

62,450 

46. 5 

1.69 

Tuckaseegee . 

Bryson . 

662 

13 

22,  500 
12,300 

38, 550 

58. 4 

1.  71 

Hiwasse.7. . 

Murphv.  N.  C . 

410 

13 

22, 360 

54.5 

1.81 

French'Broad . 

Asheville,  N.  C . 

987 

11 

16, 400 

30,  720 

31.  1 

1.87 

Tennessee .  . 

Knoxville . 

8, 990 

1, 180 

10 

92, 891 

157,410 

17.5 

1.  70 

Hiwasse . 

Reliance . 

10 

28, 550 

55,  200 

46.8 

1.93 

PAST  AND  FUTURE.  FLOODS. 


97 


TABLE  NO.  29— Continued. 


Stream. 

Place  measured. 

Drainage 
area — 
square 
miles. 

Length 

of 

record 
— years. 

Average 
yearly 
flood 
flow — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 
mum 
flood — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 

mum 

flood 

per 

square 
mile — 
second- 
feet. 

Ratio 
of  maxi¬ 
mum  to 
average 
flood. 

ST.  LAWRENCE  RIVER 

BASIN. 

Genesee . 

Rochester,  N.  Y  . . . 

2,365 

128 

22, 100 

50,  000 

21.  0 

2.  26 

Genesee. . . 

.  .do . 

2,365 

12 

22,400 

36, 500 

15.4 

1.63 

Moose . 

Moose  River,  N.  Y. 

'346 

11 

5,  780 

6,  760 

19.6 

1. 17 

UPPER  MISSISSIPPI 

RIVER  BASIN. 

Mississippi . 

St.  Paul,  Minn. . . 

35,  700 

19 

42,  223 

80,  800 

2.3 

1.91 

Pine. .  .V. . 

Pine  River  Reser- 

voir,  Minn . 

452 

16 

1,051 

1,586 

3.5 

1.51 

Mississippi . 

Above  Sandy 

River,  Minn . 

4,510 

15 

6,  250 

9,572 

2.  1 

1.53 

Chippewa . 

Chippewa  Falls, 

Wis . 

5,300 

11 

36,  454 

64,  400 

12.1 

1.77 

MISSOURI  RIVER  BASIN. 

Kansas . 

Lecompton,  Kans. . 

58, 550 

60 

81,  000 

221,  000 

3.8 

2.  72 

Kansas . 

Lawrence,  Kans  . . . 

58,  550 

15 

59, 300 

221,  000 

3.8 

3.72 

West  Gallatin . 

Salesville,  Mont. . . . 

860 

15 

5,800 

10, 750 

12.5 

•  1.86 

Platte . 

Columbus,  Neb. . .. 

56,900 

14 

25,  000 

51, 100 

.9 

2.  05 

Madison . 

Red  Bluff,  Mont. . . 

2,  085 

13 

6,500 

10,  275 

4.9 

1.58 

Milk . 

Havre,  Mont . 

7,300 

13 

3,919 

9,600 

1.3 

2. 46 

North  Platte,  Neb . 

North  Platte,  Neb  . 

28'  500 

13 

17',  640 

25, 500 

.9 

1.44 

Cachela  Poudre... . 

Fort  Collins,  Colo . . 

1,060 

12 

3, 133 

5,611 

5.3 

1.79 

Loupe . 

Columbus ,  Neb ... . 

13,  500 

12 

14,940 

27,  000 

2.0 

1.81 

Bear  Creek . 

Forkscreek,  Colo. . . 

345 

12 

1,291 

2,260 

6.5 

1.75 

South  Platte  (S.  Fork) 

Denver,  Colo . 

3,840 

11 

1,900 

5,  570 

1.5 

2.  94 

Republican . 

Junction,  Kans .... 

25,  840 

11 

20, 650 

47,  520 

1.8 

2.31 

Blue . 

Manhattan,  Kans. . 

9,490 

11 

27,  500 

68,  770 

7.3 

2.  50 

St.  Vrains  Creek . 

Lyons,  Colo. . . . 

209 

10 

982 

1,  280 

6.  1 

1.30 

LOWER  MISSISSIPPI 

BASIN. 

Arkansas . 

Canon  Citv,  Colo.. 

3,  060 

27 

3,  757 

6,690 

2.2 

1.  78 

Arkansas . 

Pueblo,  Colo . 

4,600 

19 

5,430 

11,  060 

2.4 

2.  04 

WESTERN  GULF  OF 

MEXICO. 

Rio  Grande . 

Del  Norte,  Colo. ... 

1,400 

17 

4,350 

7,  670 

5.5 

1.76 

Brazos . 

Waco,  Tex . 

30, 800 

11 

55,  000 

132,  000 

4.3 

2.  40 

Colorado . 

Austin,  Tex . 

37,  000 

10 

43,  000 

72, 600 

2.  0 

1.69 

GREAT  BASIN. 

Bear . 

Codings  ton,  Utah. . 

6,000 

21 

6,  550 

11,600 

1.9 

1.  77 

Bear . 

Preston,  Idaho.  ... 

4,  500 

20 

4,580 

8,  500 

1.9 

1.  86 

Provo . 

Provo,  Utah . 

640 

18 

2, 130 

4, 150 

6.5 

1.95 

Humboldt . 

Golconda.  Nev. 

10, 800 

15 

1  400 

3  160 

.3 

2.  26 

Humboldt . 

Dream,  Nev . 

13,  800 

14 

1,  260 

3,  047 

.  2 

2. 42 

Humboldt  (S.  Fork) . . 

Elko,  Nev . 

1,  150 

13 

1, 120 

1,478 

1.3 

1.32 

Logan . 

Logan,  Utah. 

218 

12 

1,390 

2,  450 

11.  2 

1.77 

Mill  Creek . 

Salt  Lake  City, 

U  tah . 

21.3 

12 

56 

112 

.5 

2.00 

Parley’s  Creek . 

. .  do . 

50. 1 

12 

142 

274 

5.  5 

1.  93 

Carson  (West  Fork). .. 

Woodward,  Cal. . .. 

70 

12 

900 

1,570 

22.2 

1.75 

Big  Cottonwood . 

Salt  Lake  City, 

Utah . 

48.5 

11 

460 

835 

17.3 

1.82 

City  Creek . 

. .  do . 

19.  2 

11 

82 

164 

8.6 

2.  00 

Ogden . 

Ogden . 

360 

11 

1,  690 

3,  257 

9. 1 

1.  93 

Truckee . 

Tahoe,  Cal . 

519 

10 

774 

1,340 

2.6 

1.  74 

Truckee . 

State  Line,  Colo.- 

Nev . 

955 

10 

5,  260 

15,300 

16.1 

2.  91 

Truckee . 

Vista,  Nev . 

1,  520 

10 

4,930 

8,940 

5.9 

1  81 

Weber . 

Unita,  Utah . 

1,600 

10 

4,  800 

7,980 

5.0 

1.66 

SOUTHERN  PACIFIC 

COAST. 

Kern . 

Bakersfield,  Cal... . 

2, 345 

20 

4,025 

9,505 

4.  1 

2. 36 

Sacramento . 

Jellys  Ferry. . 

9,300 

15 

129  000 

254  000 

27.3 

1. 97 

Tuolumne . 

LaGrange,  Cal . . 

1,  500 

15 

18  900 

52  000 

34  7 

2  75 

Kings . 

Sanger,  Cal . 

1,740 

14 

19,  000 

43, 930 

25.2 

2.31 

— 7  R  L 


98 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


TABLE  NO.  29 — Concluded. 


Stream. 

Place  measured. 

Drainage 
area — 
square 
miles. 

Length 

of 

record 

—years. 

Average 

yearly 

flood 

flow— 

second- 

feet. 

Maxi¬ 
mum 
flood — 
second- 
feet. 

Maxi¬ 

mum 

flood 

per 

square 
mile — 
second- 
feet. 

Ratio 
of  maxi¬ 
mum  to 
average 
flood. 

NORTHERN  PACIFIC 
COAST. 

Columbia . 

The  Dalles,  Ore. . . . 

237,  000 

31 

754, 100 

1,390,  000 

5.9 

1.85 

Willamette . 

Albany,  Ore . 

4,860 

19 

115, 500 
23, 550 

188,  000 
35,  200 

38.7 

1.63 

Spokane . 

Spokane,  Wash.. .. 

4,000 

18 

8.8 

1.50 

Weiser . 

Weiser,  Idaho . 

1.670 

12 

9.732 

17,940 

10.7 

1.  85 

Umatilla . 

Gibbon,  Ore . 

353 

10 

3;  808 
4,612 

10',  000 
10, 800 

28.4 

2.  63 

Cedar . 

Ravensdale,  Wash. 

170 

10 

63.5 

2. 34 

*  Miami  River  rates  are  crest  rates. 

Mr.  Fuller  has  shown  that  regardless  of  size  or  character  of  water¬ 
shed,  the  ratio  of  the  greatest  flood  to  the  average  flood  on  each  of  our 
rivers,  is  much  the  same,  viewed  broadly  and  covering  like  periods  of 
time.  That  is  to  say,  a  comparison  on  the  ratio  basis  seems  to  eliminate 
size  of  drainage  area  and  character  of  watershed,  two  of  the  most 
troublesome  factors  in  the  problem,  and  apparently  reduces  the  differ¬ 
ences  to  the  chance  combination  of  circumstances  which  may  produce  a 
great  flood  on  a  given  watershed,  and  fail  to  occur  upon  another  in  a 
like  period. 

This  method  of  comparison  further  permits,  to  some  extent  at  least, 
a  utilization  of  our  relatively  short  American  records  to  give  us  informa¬ 
tion  that  it  might  be  expected  a  longer  record  might,  upon  the  average, 
approximately  substantiate.  Thus,  this  method  of  comparison,  apparently 
justifies  the  adding  together  of  all  the  yearly  records  from  all  the  rivers 
of  the  middle  and  eastern  United  States,  setting  down  the  yearly  floods 
of  each  stream  as  ratios  of  the  average  of  each  stream,  thus  securing 
a  composite  record  of  great  length  as  of  one  stream.  The  record  thus 
produced  by  Mr.  Fuller  is  some  1,672  years  in  length,  and  by  arranging 
the  ratios  in  the  order  of  their  magnitude,  it  was  possible  to  draw 
valuable  deductions  on  the  theory  of  probability  as  to  the  flood  ratio 
likely  to  occur  upon  any  stream  in  a  given  period  of  years.  With  this 
ratio  determined  and  the  average  flood  of  the  given  stream  known,  which 
can  be  approximately  determined  by  a  relatively  small  number  of  floods, 
a  valuable  deduction  can  be  drawn  as  to  the  probable  great  flood  and  the 
likelihood  of  its  occurrence  in  a  given  period  of  years. 

A  determination  by  this  method  is  no  more  valuable,  and  probably 
not  less  valuable  than  the  actuary  tables  of  the  life  insurance  companies. 
It  cannot  be  expected  to  successfully  predict  the  maximum  flood  upon 
any  river  in  a  given  period  of  years  any  more  than  the  actuary  tables  can 
show  the  life  of  a  particular  individual,  but,  in  the  long  run  in  the 
indefinite  future  upon  any  stream,  the  conclusion  based  on  the  ratio 
method  of  comparison  wiil  probably  fit  the  occurrences,  and  the  least 
that  may  be  said  is  that  there  is  apparently  jio  better  means  of  determ¬ 
ining  the  likely  future  occurrences. 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


99 


LENGTH  OF  PERIOD  AND  PROBABLE  RATIO. 

If  the  procedure  outlined  above  is  granted,  it  is  practicable  -to 
deduce  mathematically  the  size  of  the  ratio  likely  to  occur  in  a  given 
period  of  years.  The  following  table  is  quoted  from  Mr.  Fuller’s  paper, 
and  shows  the  ratios  that  are  likely  to  occur  in  the  several  yearly  periods 
named. 

TABLE  NO.  30— RELATION  BETWEEN  FLOOD  TO  BE  EXPECTED  IN  A  SERIES  OF 

YEARS  AND  THE  AVERAGE  YEARLY  FLOOD. 

(From  paper  on  Flood  Flows  by  Weston  E.  Fuller,  American  Society  of  Civil  Engineers,  October  15, 

1913.) 


Time  in  years. 

Ratio  of  largest 
flood  to 

average  yearly  flood- 

Time  in  years. 

Ratio  of  largest 
flood  to 

average  yearly  flood. 

1 . 

.  1. 00 

50 . 

.  2.36 

5 . 

.  1. 56 

100 . 

2. 60 

10 . 

.  1.80 

500 . 

.  3. 16 

25 . 

.  2. 12 

1,000 . 

.  3.40 

Thus,  in  one  year  there  is  an  even  chance  that  the  average  flood  will 
be  equaled,  in  ten  years  the  chances  are  even  that  a  flood  of  1.8  times 
the  average  will  be  equaled,  and  that  in  1,000  years  the  chances  are  even 
that  a  flood  will  occur  3.4  times  the  average  flood.  In  a  way  therefore, 
this  procedure  tends  to  fix  a  more  or  less  definite  maximum  to  provide 
for  which,  designs  may  be  made,  or,  if  the  property  to  be  protected  is 
sufficiently  valuable,  or  if  many  lives  are  to  be  protected  as  in  the  flood 
protection  of  a  great  city,  the  factor  of  safety  can  be  provided  and  the 
works  may  be  made  adequate  to  provide  against  the  greatest  future  con¬ 
tingency  probable,  with  as  liberal  an  allowance  for  error  or  the  eccen¬ 
tricity  of  chance,  as  cost  may  permit  or  the  value  of  the  protection  may 
warrant. 

FLOOD  RATIOS  AT  PEORIA. 

It  is  practicable  by  the  use  of  the  rating  curve  at  Peoria  previously 
mentioned,  to  determine  roughly,  floods  of  past  years.  It  will  be  instruc¬ 
tive  to  compare  these  flood  rates  and  determine  their  relation  to  the 
average  flood  at  this  place.  A  nearly  continuous  record  is  available  at 
Peoria  since  1867,  a  period  of  forty-eight  years.  Table  No.  31  shows 
the  five  greatest  floods  within  this  period ;  the  ratio  of  each  to  the  average 
flood  and  the  probable  frequency  of  occurrence  based  on  the  forty-eight 
year  record. 


TABLE  NO.  31— COMPARISON  OF  FLOOD  RATIOS  AT  PEORIA. 
Length  of  record — 48  years.  Average  flood— 40,800  second-feet. 


Year. 

Flood 
in  second- 
feet. 

Ratio 
to  average 
flood- 

Comparative 
expectancy 
— years. 

1904 . . 

80,  000 
73,  000 

1.96 

48 

1913 . 

1.78 

24 

1908 . 

72, 000 
68, 000 
64,  000 

1.76 

16 

1892 . 

1.66 

12 

1867 . 

1.  56 

10 

On  the  basis  of  the  record  at  Peoria,  we  might  therefore,  expect  a 
flood  equal  to  that  of  1904  once  in  forty-eight  years,  a  flood  equal  to 
that  in  1913  twice  in  forty-eight  years,  or  once  in  twenty-four  years,  a 


100 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


flood  equal  to  that  in  1908.,  three  times  in  forty -eight  years  or  once  in 
sixteen  years,  that  is  to  say,  based  on  the  record  that  exists,  the  chances 
would  be  even  that  the  floods  as  stated  would  occur  in  the  lengths  of 
time  mentioned.  As  to  whether  this  record  is  sufficiently  long  to  warrant 
conclusions  as  to  frequency  and  magnitude  is  open  to  question. 

FULLER  FORMULA  APPLIED  TO  RATIOS. 

An  examination  of  the  above  Illinois  River  data,  and  the  large 
amount  of  flood  data  shown  upon  Table  No.  29  would  incline  one  to  the 
belief  that  the  broad  experience  on  many  rivers  over  long  periods  is  of 
greater  significance  than  the  short  period  of  record  upon  the  Illinois. 
There  seems  to  be  no  better  means  of  applying  this  broad  experience 
than  the  formula  suggested  by  Mr.  Fuller,  which  is  in  no  sense  theoreti¬ 
cal,  but  is  the  concrete  epitome  of  the  most  lengthy  experience  which  it 
is  possible  to  apply  to  the  matter.  Expressed  mathematically,  this 
formula  is  as  follows : 

R  =  1  +  0.8  log.  T 

in  which 

T  =  time  in  years,  R=the  ratio  of  the  greatest  flood  rate  likely 
to  be  expected  within  the  time  T  to  the  average  annual  maximum  flood 
of  the  stream. 

Mr.  Fuller  has  further  summarized  the  large  amount  of  data  shown 
in  Table  No.  29  for  the  purpose  of  disclosing  the  average  effect  of  the 
size  of  the  drainage  area  upon  flood  rates,  and  demonstrates  that  the 
flood  flows  vary  more  nearly  to  the  .8  power  of  the  drainage  area  than 
anv  other  single  function  of  watershed  size.  Various  other  hvdraulicians 
have  placed  this  ratio  as  low  as  the  .6  power,  but  there  is  probably  no  con¬ 
clusion  in  this  regard  that  is  based  upon  so  large  an  amount  of  data  as 
that  of  Mr.  Fuller.  An  examination  of  the  average  floods,  as  indicated 
by  the  rating  curves  at  Peoria,  Beardstown  and  Pearl  varying  from 
13,000  to  26,000  square  miles  watershed  area,  indicates  that  this  relation 
holds  very  nearly  true  for  the  Illinois  River,  Peoria  and  Pearl  beiim  in 
substantially  exact  agreement,  and  Beardstown  varying  from  this  rule 
not  more  than  10  per  cent. 

Table  No.  32  is  prepared  from  the  Fuller  formula,  and  indicates 
the  flood  rates  most  likely  to  occur  once  at  the  place  named  within  the 
yearly  periods  stated. 


TABLE  NO.  32— FLOOD  EXPECTATION  IN  VARIOUS  PERIODS  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


Drainage 

Average 

annual 

Coeffi¬ 
cient  C 
_ Q(ave.) 

A 

Maximum  flood  rate  expectation — second-feet — 
once  in— 

Place. 

area — 
square 
miles. 

flood 

Q(are)— 

second- 

feet. 

16  years 

1  +  .8  log 
T  =  1.96. 

30  years 

1  -t-  .8  log 
T  =  2.18. 

50  years 

1  +  .Slog 
T  =  2.36. 

100  years 

1  + .8  log 
T  =  2.60. 

1000  years 
1  4-  .8  log 
T  =  3.40. 

Peoria . 

13,479 
23,  44 4 

40, 250 

20 

79, 000 
122,  000 
134,  000 
141,000 

87,  750 

95,200 
148, 000 
161,500 

104,800 
162, 500 
177, 900 
187,  200 

136, 900 
213,  000 

Beardstown . 

62',  500 
68,  460 

18 

136, 500 
149,  200 

Pearl . 

26, 182 

20 

232,900 
245,  000 

Mouth  of  river.... 

27',  914 

20 

157i  000 

170,000 

T=Time  in  years.  A=Drainage  area  in  sq.  miles.  C=Coefficient  of  run-off. 
Q=Rate  of  flow  in  second-feet.  Q(ave.)=CA-8.  Q(max)=CA-8  (l-f.81og  T). 


PAST  AND  FUTURE  FLOODS. 


101 


A  comparison  of  these  figures  with  those  hereinbefore  given,  as 
indicated  by  the  flood  of  1904,  indicate  that  the  1904  flood  is  one  that 
should  reasonably  be  expected  about  once  in  sixteen  years,  that  a  flood  of 
about  95,200  second-feet  may  be  expected  at  Peoria  once  in  fifty  years, 
a  flood  of  about  104,800  second-feet  once  in  one  hundred  years,  and  a 
flood  of  137,000  second-feet  once  in  one  thousand  years,  with  correspond¬ 
ing  flood  rates  at  Beardstown  and  Pearl  as  noted  in  the  table. 

If  it  is  assumed  that  the  flood  of  1844  was  about  one-third  larger 
than  the  1904  flood  at  Peoria,  or  say,  110,000  second-feet,  then  this  flood 
would  have  been  the  normal  maximum  flood  in  a  140-year  period  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  Fuller  formula.  The  flood  actually  occurred  seventy-one 
years  ago. 

To  some,  the  above  reasoning  may  seem  to  involve  too  many  assump¬ 
tions  to  reach  conclusions  of  merit.  It  is  quite  likely  that  time  will 
come  when  the  science  of  meteorology  reaches  a  sufficient  perfection  (and 
that  will  be  when  it  has  a  record  behind  it  sufficiently  long)  to  permit 
conclusions  as  to  the  size,  shape  and  intensity  of  great  rainstorms  in  the 
different  localities  of  the  eastern  United  States.  At  such  time  the  above 
line  of  reasoning  may  be  modified  in  that  it  may  be  practicable  to  narrow 
or  widen  the  chances  in  certain  localities,  but  at  the  present  time  there 
seems  to  be  as  good  a  chance  for  the  great  Ohio  storm  in  1913  to  cen¬ 
tralize  on  the  Illinois  River  as  to  cover  a  great  oblong  as  it  did,  spanning 
Indiana  and  Ohio,  with  the  fringes  of  the  storm  in  Illinois  and  Indiana. 
Until  such  matters  are  better  understood,  conservatism  must  assume  that 
these  great  storms  may  happen  anywhere  in  the  general  region  of  their 
occurrence. 


CONCLUSIONS  AS  TO  FLOOD  RATES. 

It  will  serve  our  present  purposes  to  apply  to  the  rfecently  leveed 
Illinois  valley  the  greatest  flood  that  has  left  an  authentic  record  of 
rate,  namely  the  flood  of  1904,  and  also  to  show  the  effect  on  water  levels 
that  would  be  occasioned  by  a  flood  about  35  per  cent  greater.  Viewing 
the  experience  broadly  of  all  the  rivers  in  the  country,  these  floods  would 
approximately  correspond  to  the  record  floods  of  sixteen  years  and  fifty 
years  respectively. 

In  the  application  of  remedies  for  the  conditions  as  they  may  be 
disclosed,  it  will  be  pertinent  to  consider  the  results  that  might  be  pro¬ 
duced  by  even  larger  floods,  and  the  data  hereinbefore  given  will  furnish 
a  background  for  the  ultimate  probabilities  of  the  future. 


PART  VII. 


FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AND  THE  EFFECT  ON 
AGRICULTURAL  LEVEES. 

Having  determined  approximately  the  magnitude  of  the  recent 
floods  on  the  Illinois  River,  and  the  most  probable  flow  rates  to  be 
expected  hereafter,  it  now  becomes  possible  to  apply  these  floods  to  the 
modified  river  valley  as  existing  today  through  the  construction  of 
levees,  and  as  it  will  probably  exist  a  few  }^ears  hence  when  the  levee 
districts  now  proposed  are  completed. 

COMPUTED  PROFILES. 

Formulas  and  coefficients  governing  steady  flow  in  uniform  chan¬ 
nels  are  well  understood  among  engineers,  and  fairly  definite  values 
governing  the  ordinary  conditions  are  in  general  use. 

In  a  river,  however,  the  conditions  differ  quite  materially  from  the 
artificial  channel  under  the  usually  assumed  conditions  of  uniform  flow, 
and  while  the  flow  formulas  usually  applied  to  the  artificial  conditions, 
are  used,  it  is  important  to  check  the  values  in  so  far  as  this  is  possible 
by  comparison  with  actual  occurrences  upon  the  stream  under  considera¬ 
tion  so  far  as  these  occurrences  can  be  determined  and  weighed. 

CHEZY  FORMULA. 

The  formula  used  in  the  following  computations  is  the  one  perhaps 
most  widely  used  by  engineers  in  estimates  of  the  flow  of  water  in 
channels.  The  formula  is  as  follows: 

Y  =  CynT 

in  which  Y  is  the  average  velocity  of  the  water  in  a  given  cross-section 
expressed  in  feet  per  second,  C  is  a  coefficient,  r  is  the  hydraulic  radius 
in  feet,  and  s  is  the  slope. 

In  applying  this  formula  to  the  conditions  on  the  Illinois  River,  it 
is  particularly  important  that  the  value  C  be  determined  under  as  many 
conditions  as  possible,  for  in  this  problem  it  will  be  necessary  to  deal 
with  some  very  irregular  cross-sections,  especially  where  certain  reaches 
of  the  stream  are  partly  leveed,  and  at  certain  other  places  within  the 
river  valley  it  will  be  necessary  to  deal  with  cross-sections  partly  within 
the  prism  of  the  river  channel  and  partly  upon  land  where  some  of  the 
floods  have  spread  out  to  a  great  width  with  only  a  shallow  depth. 

It  is  believed  that  in  view  of  the  accurate  topographical  survey,  and 
the  large  number  of  flow  measurements  during  the  1904  flood,  the  values 
here  shown  merit  considerable  confidence. 

In  applying  the  flow  formulas  to  the  Illinois  River  conditions,  it  has 
been  necessary  to  read  slopes  from  gage  records  that  are  ordinarily 
recorded  only  to  the  nearest  tenth.  It  was,  therefore,  thought  necessary 

102 


FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AND  THE  EFFECT  ON  LEVEES. 


103 


to  consider  reaches  of  river  not  shorter  than  would  produce  in  general 
two  or  three  feet  of  fall  so  that  errors  in  observation  of  slope  might 
produce  a  minimum  of  effect. 

All  of  the  flow  computations  have  been  based  upon  an  average  cross- 
section  for  each  reach  considered,  the  average  cross-section  being  the 
numerical  average  of  a  sufficient  number  of  sections  uniformly  spaced  to 
give  a  fair  determination  of  the  facts.  In  the  long  reaches  the  sections 
were  about  five  miles  apart. 

BANK-FULL  CONDITIONS. 

Table  No.  33  shows  the  result  of  computations  to  determine  the 
prevailing  flow  coefficients  under  approximately  bank-full  conditions  of 
the  stream,  that  is,  just  prior  to  the  water  forsaking  the  channel  of  the 
stream  and  partially  traveling  by  way  of  the  bottom  lands.  A  number  of 
flow  measurements  were  made  at  this  stage  of  water,  which  has  permitted 
fairly  accurate  estimates  of  the  flows  prevailing.  It  will  be  observed 
that  the  results  are  reasonably  consistent  for  hydraulic  computations. 
The  value  of  “C”  for  the  entire  river  averages  103,  with  a  corresponding, 
value  of  .0257  for  “n”  in  Kutter’s  formula. 

TABLE  NO.  33— VALUES  IN  FLOW  FORMULA  DURING  BANK-FULL  CONDITIONS  OF 

1904  AT  VARIOUS  PLACES  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


GRAFTON  TO  KAMPSVILLE  DAM. 
Distance  =  166,200  feet. 


Date  of  discharge  measure¬ 
ment. 

• 

Foot  of 
reach. 

Head  of 
reach. 

Fall— feet. 

Measured  discharge — C.  F. 

s. 

Measured  velocity — feet  per 
second. 

Area  average  in  reach — 
square  feet. 

Computed  velocity  average 
in  reach — feet  per  second. 

Mean  depth  average  inreach 
—feet. 

>\z 

ll 

o 

1 

® 

b£ 

03 

M 

9 

> 

c« 

o 

• 

03 

'B 

B 

L-r 

o 

vx 

u 

-4-> 

w 

a 

o 

L-4 

3 

Elevation  of  water 
level — M.  D. 

Gage  height— feet. 

Elevation  of  water 
level — M.  D. 

Gage  height— feet. 

May  10 . 

428.  56 

17.6 

433.  55 

24.45 

5.0 

1 58, 300 

12. 44 

25,  050 

2. 33 

19.0 

98 

.  0313 

May  23 . 

423.  96 

13.0 

428.  45 

19.35 

4.5 

1 34, 600 

12. 02 

18,  850 

1.83 

15.  5 

89 

.  0336 

May  24 . 

423.66 

12.7 

428.  10 

19.00 

4.4 

1 33, 400 

1 1. 99 

18,  160 

1.91 

15. 1 

96 

.0305 

June  27 . 

422.  76 

11.8 

424.  80 

15.  70 

2.0 

i  16,370 

1 1. 12 

15,  720 

1.  04 

13.6 

81 

.  0366 

Averages  of  “C"  and“N” 

91 

.  0330 

• 

KAMPSVILLE  DAM  TO  PEARL. 
Distance  =  61,800  feet. 


May  21 . 

429.  73 

20.  60 

431.  53 

11.83 

1.8 

*31,800 

*2. 33 

16,  670 

1.91 

12.6 

100 

.  0270 

June  3 . 

427.  48 

18. 35 

429. 12 

9.42 

1.6 

*  27^  450 

*  2.56 

13!  840 

1.98 

11. 1 

117 

.  0220 

J  une  24 . 

426.  43 

17.30 

427. 62 

7.92 

1.2 

*  17, 460 

*1.86 

12,  840 

1.40 

10.5 

95 

.0284 

Averages  of  “C”  and“N” 

104 

.  0258 

PEARL  TO  VALLEY  CITY. 
Distance  =  97,300  feet. 


May  21 . 

431. 53 

11.  S3 

435.  25 

13.  50 

3.  7 

*31,800 
*  27,  450 

*2.  33 

14,  000 

2.  27 

12.  5 

104 

.  0248 
.  0207 

J  une  3 . 

429.  12 

9.42 

432.  67 

10. 92 

3.6 

*2.  56 

11,500 

9,900 

2. 38 

10.  8 

118 

June  24 . 

427.  62 

7.92 

430. 67 

8.92 

3.1 

*  17,460 

*1.86 

1.76 

10.4 

97 

.0256 

Averages  of  “C”  and“N” 

106 

C* 

CO 

<M 

O 

104 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  LIVER. 


TABLE  NO.  33— Concluded. 


LA  GRANGE  DAM  TO  BEARDSTOWN. 
Distance  =  59,700  feet. 


Date  of  discharge  measure¬ 
ment. 

Foot  of 
reacu. 

Head  of 
reach. 

Fall — feet. 

Measured  discharge— C.  F. 

S. 

Measured  velocity — feet  per 

second. 

Area  average  in  reach — 

square  feet. 

Computed  velocity  average 

in  reach— feet  per  second. 

Mean  depth  average  in  reach 

— feet. 

>\S 

II 

o 

1 

<D 

c3 

<p 

c3 

O 

“N  ”  from  Kutter’s  Formula. 

Elevation  of  water 
level— M.  D. 

Gage  height— feet. 

Elevation  of  water 

level — M.  D. 

Gage  height— feet. 

J  une  1 . 

436. 93 

18.7 

438. 65 

11.  4 

1.  7 

3 19,  800 

3 1.46 

12. 900 

1.54 

9.9 

92 

.0276 

J  une  23 . 

435.  73 

17.5 

437.  15 

9.9 

1.4 

3 14, 950 

•1.  22 

11,300 

1.32 

9.6 

88 

.0292 

Averages  of“C’'  and“N” 

90 

.0284 

HAVANA  TO  COPPERAS  CREEK  DAM. 

Distance  =  89,300  feet. 


Mav  28 .  . 

442. 87 

11.  2 

444.  05 

16.3 

1.  2 

4  16,  650 
4  12,  120 
4  9, 830 

4  2.  22 

11,360 

9,350 

7,650 

1.47 

9.  7 

129 

.  0203 

June  21 . 

440.  97 

9.3 

442.  25 

14.5 

1.3 

4 1.94 

1.30 

8.  8 

115 

.  0219 

Julv  12 . 

439.37 

7.  7 

440.  75 

13.0 

1.4 

4 1.90 

1.28 

7.8 

116 

.0209 

Averages  of“C”  and“N” 

120 

.0210 

COPPERAS  CREEK  DAM  TO  PEKIN. 


Distance  =  85,000  feet. 


Mav  27 . 

444.43 

11.  7 

446. 17 

7.6 

1.8 

3  14,  660 
3 12,940 
3  9,070 

3  2.44 

8,  860 
8, 130 

1.  65 

10.  2 

112 

.  0230 

June  10 . 

444.  03 

11.3 

445.  67 

7. 1 

1.  7 

3  2. 38 

1.59 

9.9 

113 

.  0228 

June  18 . 

442.83 

10.  1 

444.  17 

5.6 

1.4 

3  1.94 

7,  100 
5,400 

1.28 

9.5 

102 

.0257 

July  2 . 

440. 93 

8.2 

442.  27 

3.7 

1.4 

3  6,670 

3  1.  77 

1.23 

7.9 

108 

.0226 

Averages  of“C”  and“N” 

109 

.0235 

• 

PEKIN  TO  PEORIA— LOWER  BRIDGE. 


Distance  =  49,600  feet. 


Mav  27 .  . 

446. 17 

7.6 

447.  82 

12.0 

1.6 

3  14,660 

3  2.  44 

8,360 
7,520 
6,  220 

1.76 

10.0 

98 

.  0255 

June  10 . 

445.  67 

7. 1 

447.32 

11.  5 

1.6 

3  12, 940 
3  9,070 

3  2. 38 

1.72 

9.3 

100 

.0244 

June  18 . 

444. 17 

5.  6 

445.  72 

9.9 

1.  5 

3  1.94 

1.46 

8.3 

92 

.0261 

July  2 . 

442.  27 

3.7 

443.82 

8.0 

1.5 

3  6,670 

3  1.  77 

4,440 

1.50 

7.  2 

101 

.0224 

Averages  of  “C”  and  “N” 

98 

.0246 

Numerical  average  of  all  observations 


103 


.0257 


Explanation — 

1  Indicates  measurements  made  by  U.  S.  Engineers  in  1904  at  Twelve  Mile  Island. 

*  Indicates  measurements  made  by  U.  S.  Engineers  in  1904  at  Pearl. 

3  Indicates  measurements  made  by  U.  S.  Engineers  in  1904  at  Beardstown. 

*  Indicates  measurements  made  by  U.  S.  Engineers  in  1904  at  Havana. 

*  Indicates  measurements  made  by  U.  S.  Engineers  in  1904  at  Peoria. 


FLOOD  OF  1904. 

It  is  seldom  that  a  flood  so  accurately  measured  as  the  flood  of  1904, 
passes  through  a  valley  so  well  determined  by  surveys,  as  are  the  bottom 
lands  of  the  Illinois.  It  will  be  instructive  therefore,  to  apply  this  flood 


FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AND  THE  EFFECT  ON  LEVEES. 


105 


to  the  cross-sections  and  slopes  prevailing  at  the  time  and  determine 
what  values  must  be  applied  in  the  flow  formula  to  reproduce  that  which 
was  observed. 

Table  No.  34  is  a  statement  of  the  principal  figures  resulting  from 
this  computation. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  average  values  of  C  in  the  several 
reaches  between  Grafton  and  Peoria  are  much  smaller  than  the  values 
for  C  in  the  previous  table  covering  bank-full  conditions.  The  values  of 
C  under  the  1904  flood  flow  conditions  range  from  as  high  as  57  in  the 
lower  part  of  the  river  to  as  low  as  26  in  the  reach  between  Beardstown 
and  Havana. 

Table  No.  34  also  shows  the  principal  elements  of  the  average  chan¬ 
nel  section  proper,  that  is,  excluding  the  flooded  bottom  lands  and  con¬ 
sidering  only  the  channel  of  the  river  within  its  banks.  The  table  shows 
an  estimate  of  flow  in  the  river  channel  based  on  C  =  100.  This  flow 
has  been  compared  with  the  total  flow  for  the  purpose  of  approximating 
the  flow  passing  by  land. 


TABLE  NO.  34— VALUES  IN  FLOW  FORMULA  DURING  APEX  OF  MEASURED  FLOOD 
OF  1904  AT  VARIOUS  PLACES  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

Note. — “C”  refers  to  Chezy’s  Formula  V  =  C— Vrus. 


Date. 

Reach. 

Length  of  reach— feet. 

. . 

Fall  in  reach— feet. 

Total  valley. 

Channel  section. 

Land  section. 

Ratio  of  land  flow  to  total  flow 
— per  cent. 

Average  flow— C.  F.  S. 

Average  section — square 
feet. 

Average  mean  depth- 
feet. 

Average  “C”. 

Average  section— square 
feet. 

Average  mean  depth- 
feet. 

Flow  assuming  C  =  100 
C.  F.  S. 

Average  section— square 
feet. 

Average  mean  depth- 
feet. 

Flow — C.  F.  S. 

6 

'o 

p 

> 

c/: 

<& 

05 

Apr. 

6 

Grafton  to 

Pearl . 

228,  000 

9.3 

122,  000 

114,500 

8.5 

57 

31,  000 

17.5 

83,  000 

83, 500 

7.2 

39,  000 

28 

32 

Apr. 

6 

Pearl  to 

La  Grange 

Dam . 

182,  000 

6.4 

113,300 

130, 850 

7. 1 

55 

27,  000 

14.6 

62,  000 

103,  850 

6.2 

51,300 

33 

45 

Apr. 

6 

Grafton  to 

La  Grange 

Dam . 

410,  000 

15.7 

118, 300 

122,  000 

7.9 

56 

29.  000 

16. 1 

72,  000 

93,  000 

6.  7 

46, 300 

31 

39 

Apr. 

4 

Beardstown 

to  Havana. 

164,  200 

4.1 

95,  000 

218, 050 

10.9 

26 

21, 070 

15.9 

42, 300 

196,980 

10.8 

52, 700 

16 

56 

Apr. 

1 

Havana  to 

Pekin . 

174,500 

3.4 

85,  000 

189, 600 

12.5 

29 

23,  200 

16.4 

41,600 

166,  400 

12. 1 

43,400 

17 

51 

Mar. 

28 

Pekin  to 

Peoria . 

49, 600 

3.6 

81,  000 

74, 100 

11.5 

38 

23,  000 

17.6 

82,  000 

51,  100 

10.1 

—1,  000 

Apr. 

4 

Beardstown 

to  Peoria. . . 

388,  300 

10.5 

89,  000 

183,  000 

11.4 

28 

20,  000 

16.0 

43, 500 

163,  000 

11.0 

45,  500 

13 

51 

Apr. 

4 

Grafton  to 

Peoria . 

858,  000 

27.3 

103,  500 

158,  500 

9.5 

38 

24,  500 

15.6 

51,500 

134,  000 

9.0 

52,  000 

21 

50 

All  this  information  would  seem  to  indicate,  that  in  general  from 
40  to  50  per  cent  of  the  flood  traveled  by  way  of  the  land,  leaving  from 
50  to  60  per  cent  traveling  by  the  channel  proper.  There  are  doubtless 
some  places  where  the  flow  by  land  is  much  less  than  these  average 
values. 


106 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


EFFECT  OF  TREES. 

The  reason  was  not  apparent  at  first  why  the  values  of  C  were  so 
much  smaller  in  the  middle  reaches  of  the  river  than  in  the  valley  below 
the  La  Grange  dam.  An  examination  of  the  survey  sheets,  however,  dis- 

TABLE  NO.  35. 


Table:  and  Diagram  Illustrating 

the  Effects  of  Trees  and  Brush 
Upon  the  Average  FLood  Flow  Values 
in  Certain  Illinois  River  Cross  Sections 
During  the  Flood  of  1904 


Id  Accompointj  the  Report  of 

AlvordS  Burdick 

Enqineers  Chicaojo 


Reach  of 

River 

Averaqe  \folue  of  "C  in 

Total  Flood  Cross  Section 
of  VaHeqat 

Apex  of  Flood 

Approximate 
Fbrcentaqe  of 
Lanolin 

Timber  and  Brush 

Groifton  to  Pearl 

57 

42% 

Pearl  to  LaGranqe 

55 

23% 

Grafton  to  LaGranoje 

56 

30% 

Beardsfown  to  Havana 

26 

42% 

Havana  to  Pekin 

29 

58% 

Pekin  to  Ffeoria 

38 

45% 

Beoirotetown  to  Peoria 

28 

52% 

Graft  on  to  Peoria 

38 

39% 

Percent  of  Bottom  Land  inTimberand  Brush 


o 


_ 


riev"i6  A  tjdrrT  t-^coibnl 


FIGURE  29. 


Murr  City 


M*M0Au6H 


LAKE 


\LAKE 


Map  Of  X 

Flood  Plain  —  Illinois  River 
Pearl  no  La  Grange  Lock 

'  SHOWING 

Extent  of  Timber  in  Bottom  Lands 

IN  THE  VEAR  1904 


To  Accompany  The  Report  of 

>  Alvord  &  Burdick 
Engineers  Chicago. 


Indicate?  Tmber  A.  Brush 


0.' 


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Frederick 


FIGURE  20. 


FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AND  THE  EFFECT  ON  LEVEES. 


107 


closes  the  fact  that  although  the  mean  depths  were  less  below  La  Grange, 
the  bottom  lands  were  about  70  per  cent  cleared  of  trees  and  brush  at 
the  time  of  the  survey  1902  to  1904,  and  presumably  during  the  flood, 
whereas  in  the  reach  between  Beardstown  and  Peoria,  the  bottoms  were 
only  about  one-half  cleared  of  timber  and  brush.  The  data  seem  to 
indicate  that  on  the  Illinois  bottoms  for  the  relations  between  stream 
cross-sections  and  valley  cross-sections  there  prevailing,  the  bottoms 
about  30  per  cent  timbered,  gave  average  C  values  of  56  as  compared 
to  28  for  cross-sections  52  per  cent  timbered.  (See  Table  No.  35.) 
Figures  29  and  30  illustrate  the  timbered  conditions  in  two  of  the 
reaches.  It  will  be  noted  that  the  reach  giving  the  lowest  C  value  was 
much  the  more  heavily  timbered. 

It  is  not  expected  that  these  figures  are  of  general  scientific  interest. 
They  would  not  be  applicable  to  other  streams  without  correction  for  the 
relation  between  the  bottom  land  sections  and  the  stream  cross-sections 
proper.  It  is  believed  however,  that  the  above  information  will  be  of 
material  assistance  in  estimating  flood  heights  under  the  changed  con¬ 
ditions  of  the  future,  and  to  avoid  being  misled  by  some  excessive  flood 
heights  of  the  distant  past  before  any  land  was  cleared. 


TABLE  NO.  36— TABLE  ILLUSTRATING  THE  RELATIVE  IMPORTANCE  OF  TIMBER 
AND  BRUSH  ON  A  COMPLETELY  LEVEED  REACH,  I.E.,  FROM  MILE  40  TO  MILE  60— 
ILLINOIS  RIVER  IN  FLOOD  OF  1913. 


Section  at— 

Mile  40. 

Mile  45. 

Mile  49.7. 

Mile  55. 

Mile  60. 

Total  flood  flow— area,  square  feet . 

Ac  i  in  river  channel,  square  left . 

Pv  ?ent  channel  section  to  total . 

Average . 

35,500 

32,920 

93% 

42, 800 
32,  430 
76% 

32, 850 
26,  880 
82% 

35, 100 
33,400 
95% 

26,400 

23,510 

89% 

87% 
2,  220 
1,300 

370 
3,  000 
81% 

vVidth  of  flooded  section,  feet . 

Width  of  channel  section,  feet . 

“7  nd  Section”  on  Levee  Side— 

.Vidth,  feet . 

Area,  square  feet . 

Per  cent  land  area  not  cleared . 

Average . 

2,  600 
1,850 

150 

830 

53% 

3,  620 
1,720 

430 

3,020 

84% 

1,970 

1,620 

150 

1,000 

53% 

1,650 
1, 150 

300 
2,  250 
77% 

70% 

550 

.2,970 

“u  and  Section”  on  “ Bluff  Side”— 

Width,  feet . 

Area,  square  feet . 

Per  cent  land  not  cleared . 

600 

1,750 

1,470 
7,  350 

200 

700 

200 

640 

Per  cent  of  total  flow  cross-section  over  timber  and 
brush  land . 

L  2% 

6.0% 

7-4% 

1.5% 

6.6% 

Averaee . • . 

4.  5% 

VALUES  IN  1913  FLOOD. 

It  has  previously  been  stated  that  in  all  probability,  the  flood  of 
1913  approximated  the  flow  rates  of  1904  very  closely  in  the  middle  and 
lower  river,  with  rates  slightly  less  only  as  far  upstream  as  Peoria. 

As  confirmatory  in  a  general  way  of  the  similarity  of  these  two 
floods,  we  take  occasion  to  refer  to  Figures  31  and  32  which  show  the 
rainfall  contours  of  the  storm  of  March  17  to  April  1,  1904,  and  March 
20-27,  1913.  It  will  be  observed  that  in  both  storms  the  southeastern 


108 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

part  of  the  watershed  received  about  6"  of  rainfall.  The  total  average 
rainfalls  in  these  storms  were  as  follows: 


• 

Storm 
of  March  17 
to  April  1, 
1904. 

Storm 
of  March  20 
to  27, 1913. 

Rainfall  in  inches  above  Peoria . 

3.74 

3.37 

Rainfall  in  inches  below  Peoria . 

4.68 

4.28 

Total  rainfall  on  watershed . 

4.24 

3.86 

It  will  be  observed  that  so  far  as  the  total  rainfall  is  concerned, 
these  storms  are  quite  similar.  The  1904  storm  however,  covered  a 
longer  period. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  certain  computations  of  future  flood  heights 
in  places  fall  very  close  to  the  1913  flood  profile,  it  will  be  useful  to 
determine  what  values  probably  existed  in  the  1913  flood.  This  has  been 
done  in  Table  No.  37.  This  table  shows  the  interesting  fact  that  in  the 
reach  of  the  river  where  the  stream  is  fully  leveed,  the  values  of  C  cor¬ 
respond  fairly  well  with  the  values  previously  tabulated  for  bank-full 
conditions,  indicating  that  when  the  bottom  lands  are  leveed  off  entirely, 
the  problem  of  flood  heights  may  be  approached  quite  confidently  using 
values  of  C  of  about  100. 


TABLE  NO.  37— VALUES  IN  FLOW  FORMULA  DURING  APEX  OF  FLOOD  OF  1913,  AT 
VARIOUS  PLACES  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER— ASSUMING  MAXIMUM  FLOW  RATE  TO 
HAVE  BEEN  EVERYWHERE  THE  SAME  AS  IN  1901. 


Date. 

Reach. 

Length 
— feet. 

Fall- 

feet. 

Aver¬ 
age 
flow — 
C.  F.  S. 

Aver¬ 
age 
sec¬ 
tion — 
square 
feet. 

Aver¬ 
age 
mean 
depth — 
feet. 

Aver¬ 

age 

“C”  in 
Chezv’s 
form¬ 
ula 

v  =  c 

|/rs. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

11 

Grafton  to  Kampsville  Dam . 

166,  200 

6.8 

124,  000 

71,600 
32. 300 

11. 1 

81 

11 

Kampsville  Dam  to  Pearl . 

6R800 

2. 1 

115,  000 

16.0 

*152 

11 

Pearf  to  Valley  City . 

97;  300 

5.7 

114,000 

34, 300 
80,400 

15.6 

110 

11 

Valley  City  to  Meredosia . 

50,200 

34.300 
59,  200 

164,  200 

89.300 
85,000 
49,600 

.9 

112,  000 
111,000 
108,000 
95,  000 
85,000 

11.5 

85 

11 

Meredosia  to  La  Grange  Dam . 

1.1 

96i  700 

15.0 

53 

6 

La  Grange  Dam  to  Beardstown . 

1.0 

107,  200 

15. 3 

63 

5 

Beardstown  to  Havana . 

2.5 

201.400 

11.8 

35 

4 

Havana  to  Copperas  Dam . 

1.7 

160,300 

14.0 

32 

3 

Copperas  Dam  to  Pekin . 

2.5 

85,  000 
81,000 

56,500 
69,  800 

14.  1 

74 

2 

Pekin  to  Peoria . 

2.5 

12.7 

46 

*  Data  in  this  reach  is  not  reliable  on  account  of  a  break  in  the  levee  of  the  Hartwell  District. 


FLOW  RATES. 

We  have  hereinbefore  given  a  table  (No.  27)  showing  our  conclusion 
as  to  the  flow  rates  that  prevailed  at  various  places  upon  the  Illinois 
River  during  the  flood  of  1904.  These  data  have  been  used  in  the 
computed  flood  profiles  hereinafter  given,  interpolating  between  observa¬ 
tion  points  in  the  table  in  accordance  with  tributary  drainage  areas. 


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FIGURE  31. 


20  Miles 

Scale 


Map  of  the 

WATERSHED  OF  THE  ILLINOIS  RlVER 

SHOVING 

Rainfall  Contours 

Storm  of  March  17  to  April  1. 1904 


To  AccoFripony  Report  of 
Alvord  &  Burock 
Enqinwrs  Ch-cog© 


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FIGURE  32. 


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Map  of  the 

W\tershed  of  the  Illinois  River 

Showing 

Rainfall  Contours 

Storm  of  March  20  to  27, 1313 


To  Aicompcny  Report  Of 
Alvord  k  Burdick 

Engineer®  0*0090 


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FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AXD  THE  EFFECT  ON  LEVEES. 


109 


In  the  computation  of  profile  for  a  flood  35  per  cent  larger  than 
that  of  1904,  it  has  been  assumed  that  the  flood  would  be  35  per  cent 
greater  in  rate  to  every  place  upon  the  river  considered. 

FLOW  VALUES  USED  IX  COMPUTATIONS. 

In  the  computations  of  the  profiles  of  future  floods,  we  have  in 
general  been  guided  by  the  data  hereinbefore  presented,  and  further, 
upon  close  observation  of  the  effects  that  have  been  produced  heretofore 
under  conditions  as  nearly  similar  as  possible  to  the  probable  results  in 
the  estimate  of  particular  profiles. 

It  will  be  noted  that  much  of  the  data  points  toward  the  conclusion 
that  for  Illinois  River  "channel  conditions,”  as  distinguished  from  those 
conditions  where  bottom  lands  are  overflowed,  the  value  of  C  in  the 
Chezy  formula  approximates  100,  or  reduced  to  value  of  n  in  KutteVs 
formula  under  the  general  depth  and  slopes  prevailing  approximately, 
n  =  .026. 

Between  Beardstown  and  Kampsville,  a  distance  of  some  sixty  miles, 
the  river  is  now  very  largely  confined  by  levees,  and  the  channel  con¬ 
ditions  are  very  largely  similar  to  those  of  artificial  channels,  except  in 
cases  where  the  cross-sections  are  more  or  less  broken  up  through  the 
partial  reclamation  of  the  bottom  lands.  We  have  used  values  of  C 
approximating  100  for  the  conditions  of  the  re-occurrence  of  the  1904 
flood  in  the  river  valley  leveed  as  at  present,  and  have  used  higher  values 
for  C  under  the  circumstances  where  the  same  flood  might  enter  the 
Mississippi  River  at  a  higher  level  as  in  1844.  These  variations  in  the 
value  of  C  in  general  range  from  100  to  108,  the  value  being  varied  in 
accordance*  with  the  mean  depth  and  slope,  as  would  be  indicated  by 
substituting  these  values  in  Kutteffs  formula  for  C. 

Above  Beardstown,  nearly  all  the  reaches  are  more  or  less  affected 
for  long  distances  by  the  flooding  of  bottom  lands  at  all  stages  of  water 
considered,  and  in  computing  flood  heights  under  various  conditions  of 
flow,  the  reasoning  has  been  as  close  as  possible  from  known  results 
under  known  circumstances.  In  most  cases  values  were  substituted  in 
the  flow  formula,  values  being  used  that  were  indicated  by  the  nearest 
comparable  known  circumstance.  In  some  cases  where  the  computed 
flood  differed  slightly  from  an  observed  flood  of  known  volume,  it  was 
only  necessary  to  correct  the  slope  for  difference  in  stage,  resulting 
velocities  and  mean  depth,  to  ascertain  approximately  the  profile  for  the 
changed  condition. 

To  sum  up  therefore,  theory  has  been  used  in  the  computation  of 
these  flood  profiles  only  as  it  might  be  useful  to  reason  intelligently 
from  the  nearest  similar  known  condition  to  the  condition  upon  which 
information  was  desired. 

FLOW  VALUES  OBSERVED  OX  OTHER  RIVERS. 

For  comparative  purposes  we  would  show  herewith,  Table  Xo.  38, 
which  is  compiled  from  a  treatise  by  Ganguillet  and  Kutter.  We  show 
only  the  experimental  flow  values  in  instances  where  the  depths  and 
velocities  were  somewhat  comparable  to  those  upon  the  Illinois.  It  will 


110 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER, 
be  observed  that  data  on  other  streams  conforms  fairly  well  to  the  tabu- 

\j 

lated  observations  on  the  Illinois. 


TABLE  NO.  38— TABLE  SHOWING  “C”  AND  “N”  VALUES  ON  VARIOUS  RIVERS  FROM 

TABLE  BY  GANGUILLET  AND  ICUTTER. 


Ganguillet  and  Kutter. 

Hydraulic 

radius. 

Velocity 
—feet  per 
second. 

“C” 

value. 

“N”  value 

V7eser . 

6.3  to  13.6 

3. 5  to  5. 1 

81 

to  101 

.  020  to  .  025 

Tiber . 

9. 46 

3.41 

97.1 

.0228 

Elbe . 

17. 5 

8.0 

86.3 

.0275 

Saone . 

10.9  to  15.8 

1.  9  —  2.  4 

89 

—  98 

. 027  — .  030 

Seine  at  Paris . 

10.9  to  18.4 

3.  7  to  4.  8 

92 

—  108 

. 023  — .  026 

Seine  at  Meulan . 

11.  2  to  17.9 

2. 3  to  3.  3 

86 

—  93 

.  026  — .  029 

Rhine  at  Neuburg . 

13.91 

5.  84 

78.9 

.0297 

Rhine  at  Pforz . 

13.94 

5. 64 

79.8 

.0294 

Rhine  at  Delta . 

11  to  16 

3.  0  to  3.  5 

89 

—  98 

.  022  — .  029 

Rhine  at  Delta . 

11  to  17 

3.  0  to  5.  0 

81 

—  99 

.024  —.030 

Danube . 

12  to  14 

2.  2  to  2. 5 

S7 

tol02 

.  0247—.  0287 

Bayou  LaFourche . 

13  to  16 

2.  7  to  3.  0 

116 

to  130 

.  0195—.  0225 

Bayou  Plaquemine . 

15.3  to  18.4 

4.  0  to  5.  2 

84.4 

to  84.5 

.  0292—.  0296 

Great  Nevka . 

17.42 

2.  05 

127.3 

.0252 

Missouri . 

11  to  18 

3.  0  to  6.  2 

90 

to  107 

.  023  — .  0254 

Average  of  all  (excluding  extremes) . 

93 

.026 

FUTUEE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS. 

With  the  aid  of  the  data  hereinbefore  described,  we  have  estimated 
the  height  to  which  the  flood  waters  will  probably  rise  in  the  improved 
river  valley  under  several  conditions  as  set  forth  on  Fig.  33. 

Fig.  33  shows  the  water  profiles  from  Grafton  to  Peoria.  Three 
observed  flood  lines  are  shown,  the  full  lines  A,  B  and  C, — “A”  repre¬ 
senting  the  flood  of  1904,  “B”  representing  the  flood  of  1913,  and  “C” 
representing  the  flood  of  1844.  The  first  and  last  floods  passed  through 
a  practically  virgin  valley  with  no  levee  districts.  The  flood  of  1913 
passed  through  a  valley  almost  completely  leveed  below  \  alley  City. 

Fig.  33  further  shows  the  computed  profile  of  the  1904  flood, 
assuming  this  flood  to  be  repeated  under  present  conditions  with  levee 
districts  now7  under  construction  completed,  it  being  assumed  that  the 
flood  enters  the  Mississippi  Eiver  at  the  same  elevation  as  in  1904.  It 
will  be  observed  that  in  the  low^er  eighty  miles  of  river  this  wrater  surface 
follows  quite  closely  the  actually  observed  flood  in  1913.  It  is  estimated 
that  the  maximum  variation  from  the  original  1904  flood  would  occur 
in  the  vicinity  of  Valley  City,  at  which  place  the  vTater  would  be  about 
4  feet  higher  than  in  1904.  This  difference  remains  substantially  the 
same  up  as  far  as  Beardstown,  above  which  place  the  difference  gradually 
becomes  less,  and  it  is  estimated  that  at  Peoria  the  retarding  effect  of  the 
leveed  districts  dowmstream  has  been  very  nearly  lost.  The  line  marked 
“G”  is  the  computed  v7ater  profile  of  a  1904  flood,  assuming  it  to  pass 
through  the  Illinois  Eiver  valley  wdien  all  the  levee  districts  now  pro¬ 
jected  are  completed.  It  will  be  observed  that  this  wTould  cause  the 
water  to  rise  a  little  over  5  feet  higher  at  Meredosia  than  it  did  in 
1904;  in  fact,  nearly  2  feet  higher  than  any  water  has  reached  at  this 
place.  At  Havana,  curve  “ G ”  very  nearly  coincides  w7ith  curve  “DA 
but  in  the  vicinity  of  Copperas  Creek  they  again  separate  on  account  of 
the  proposed  levee  districts  in  that  vicinity. 


FIGURE 


U 


f 


.£E 


UJ 


CQ 


5 


Mr 


- - r  -~i 


—4-  -+  ■ 


•4*04 


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I  I  I  | 


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W4« 


V. 


Diagram  Showing 

Maximum  Flood  Profiles 

Observed  Computed 
Illinois  River 

•  aw 

To  Accompany  the  Report  of 

Alvord  &  Burdick 

Engineers  Chicago 

Legend 

A- F  ood  of  Aprils,  1904  o  Indicates  maximum  stage  in  thi9  flood. 

B- Flood  of  April!  1,1913  ®  ..  »  ..  . 

C  -  Highest  water  -  Flood  of  1644. 

D  -  Computed  Profile  of  1904  Flood,  assuming  it  +o  be  repeated  under  present 
conditions,  with  levee  districts  now  under  construction  completeof. 

E  -  Computed  profile,  same  as  D,  except  flood  assumed  to  enter  Mississippi 
ot  crest  level  of  1844  Flood. 

F  -  Computed  profile  of  a  flood  having  a  rate  about  35  percent  greater 
than  flood  of  1904,  assuming  it  to  pass  thru  the  valley  under  present 
conditions,  with  levees  under  construction  completed,  and  to  enter  the 
Mississippi  ort  the  flood  level  of  1844. 

£-=- Computed,  profile,  same  as  D  except  that  all  projected  levee  districts 
ore  assumed  to  be  completed. 

H  ~  1  ■ 


are  assumed  to  be 

Computed  profile,  same  as  F  except  that  all  probable  future  levee 
districts  are  assumed  to  be  completeoli 


250  220  2(0  200 


190  180 


<5IJ6- 


\ 


447.  r 


S4 


X 


4SM. 


-470 


465 


460 


455 


450 


445 


440 


JJ _ 


— 


>435 


v4si,s  ■ 


T 


170 


150  140  130  120  110  KX)  90  80 

Miles  Above  Grafton 


70 


60 


50 


40 


30 


20 


10 


0 


Elevations  Above  Memphis  Datum 


I'lUUlLIL  Jf. 


Elevations  Above*  Memphis  Datum 


FUTURE  FLOOD  HEIGHTS  AND  THE  EFFECT  ON  LEVEES. 


Ill 


HIGH  MISSISSIPPI  LEVELS. 

It  is  pertinent  to  inquire  what  would  happen  should  the  flood  of 
1904  be  repeated  with  the  bottom  lands  leveed  as  at  present,  and  with 
the  Mississippi  at  the  height  prevailing  during  the  flood  of  1844.  This 
condition  is  illustrated  on  Fig.  33  by  line  “E.”  It  will  be  observed  that 
the  computed  line  “E”  lies  above  the  flood  of  1844  for  the  reach  of  river 
between  Pearl  and  Havana.  The  curve  “E”  intersects  the  curve  “D,” 
which  was  the  same  flood  entering  the  Mississippi  at  the  low  level  as  in 
1904  in  the  vicinity  of  Copperas  Creek.  This  indicates  that  for  large 
floods  having  about  the  flow  rate  of  1904,  the  effect  of  the  Mississippi 
Eiver  stage  disappears  below  Peoria. 

Eor  the  purpose  of  illustrating  a  condition  that  may  occur  but 
probably  rarely,  we  show  on  Fig.  33,  the  profile  “F”  which  is  the  com¬ 
puted  height  to  which  the  water  would  rise,  assuming  a  flood  about  35 
per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904  should  pass  through  the  valley 
under  present  conditions,  with  levees  under  construction  completed,  and 
enter  the  Mississippi  Eiver  at  the  flood  level  of  1844. 

It  has  been  elsewhere  estimated  that  a  flood  of  this  delivery  might 
reasonably  be  expected  to  occur  about  once  in  fifty  years.  It  would  be 
natural  to  expect  that  the  Mississippi  would  be  relatively  high  at  the 
time  of  occurrence  of  such  a  flood.  In  assuming  that  this  large  flood 
is  delivered  to  the  Mississippi  at  the  flood  height  of  1844,  which  is  the 
greatest  flood  of  record  on  the  Mississippi  Eiver  in  over  one  hundred 
years,  we  have  probably  fixed  flood  heights,  especially  in  the  lower  river, 
that  are  not  likely  to  be  exceeded  once  in  fifty  years.  It  is  quite  con¬ 
ceivable  that  even  a  flood  of  greater  volume  might  occur  at  any  time. 
The  probability  of  its  occurrence  on  the  apex  of  a  record  Mississippi 
flood  is  not  very  great. 

ABOVE  PEOEIA. 

The  computations  have  been  carried  upstream  only  so  far  as  Peoria 
for  the  reason  that  the  developments  above  this  place,  including  those  in 
prospect,  are  not  sufficiently  great  to  have  an  important  effect  upon  the 
flood  profiles.  The  developments  are  very  largely  in  prospect  and  not 
well  matured.  It  is  therefore  thought  to  be  inadvisable  to  attempt  to 
reason  out  the  small  variations  in  river  levels  that  might  be  occasioned 
by  the  proposed  districts. 

GAGE  HEIGHTS  AND  LEVEE  DISTEICTS. 

Eig.  34  shows  the  observed  and  computed  water  profiles  hereinabove 
described,  and  also  the  profiles  of  the  levee  tops  on  the  Illinois  Eiver  so 
far  as  we  have  been  able  to  determine  them.  This  figure  is  prepard  for 
the  purpose  of  showing  the  adequacy  or  inadequacy  of  the  existing  levees 
to  protect  the  land  against  future  floods. 

Upon  this  drawing  we  have  used  the  standard  levee  profiles  as  indi¬ 
cated  by  the  dotted  lines  on  Fig.  23.  These  profiles  have  been  used  as 
representing  the  levee  top  that  it  is  endeavored  to  maintain  in  each 
district,  the  levee  actually  existing  varying  more  or  less  from  time  to 
time  as  it  may  be  reduced  in  height  by  weathering  or  as  it  may  be 
increased  in  height  to  provide  additional  protection.  An  examination 


112 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


of'  Fig.  34  indicates  that  all  the  levees  are  of  sufficient  height  to  with¬ 
stand  the  Hood  heights  of  1904  and  1913,  although  at  the  time  of 
occurrence  at  least  one  district  was  over-topped  by  the  latter  hood. 

The  hood  height  of  1844  would  inundate  about  half  of  the  existing 
districts. 

The  hood  of  1904  might  be  repeated  in  the  river  valley  as  now 
improved  without  over-topping  any  of  the  levees.  One  district  would 
however,  be  over-topped  if  the  same  hood  occurred  in  the  river  valley 
with  all  the  districts  completed  as  now  proposed. 

If  the  hood  of  1904  should  be  repeated  in  the  river  valle}r  as  now 
existing  and  should  enter  the  Mississippi  at  the  height  of  the  1844  hood, 
about  one-third  of  the  levee  districts  would  be  over-topped — all  of  those 
districts  lying  below  Meredosia. 

If  a  hood  exceeding  in  amount  the  hood  of  1904  by  about  35  per 
cent,  should  be  repeated  in  the  present  valle}T,  and  should  enter  the 
Mississippi  at  the  hood  height  of  1844,  then  about  two- thirds  of  the 
levee  districts  would  probably  be  over-topped.  A  few  districts  near 
Valley  City,  Beardstown  and  Pekin  would  probably  escape. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  standard  levee  grades  are  what  might 
be  called  only  slightly  deficient,  the  lowest  lying  not  more  than  3  feet 
below  the  maximum  hood  height  on  figure  34. 

PBOPEB  LEVEE  HEIGHTS. 

If  these  levees  protected  a  great  city  where  a  failure  of  the  levee 
would  entail  great  loss  of  life,  as  at  Dayton  during  the  hood  of  1913, 
and  great  damage  to  property,  then  there  should  be  considered  quite, 
materially  greater  how  volumes  than  we  have  herein  considered,  and 
consequently,  greater  heights  of  water  under  the  conditions  of  the  leveed 
river  valley  present  and  future.  Under  such  circumstances  we  would  be 
warranted  in  considering  contingencies  more  remote  than  have  been 
considered  herein. 

In  the  Illinois  Biver  valley,  levees  protect  farm  land  only.  A  failure 
is  not  likely  to  produce  loss  of  life,  for  in  hood,  levees  are  very  carefully 
watched,  and  if  a  levee  is  over-topped,  the  inhabitants  are  usually  pre¬ 
pared  to  leave  some  time  in  advance  of  the  event.  The  damage  from 
hooding  will  be  nominal  except  for  the  loss  of  a  crop.  The  hooding  of 
a  district  about  once  in  fifty  years  would  not  seem  to  involve  sufficient 
damage  to  incur  great  expense  to  provide  against  flooding,  but  when  the 
ability  to  readily  sell  the  land  is  considered,  it  is  probable  that  a  liberal 
factor  of  safety  in  the  height  of  the  levees  is  justified.  It  will  be  readily 
seen  that  where  at  all  possible,  levees  should  extend  sufficiently  above  the 
maximum  water  level  to  guard  against  the  danger  of  over-topping 
through  wave  action  and  wash. 


PART  VIII. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 

The  preceding  chapters  have  shown  that  the  agricultural  levee  dis¬ 
tricts  have  grown  and  encroached  upon  the  river  bottoms  to  such  extent 
that  they  endanger  themselves  by  restricting  the  flood  water  channel  and 
increasing  the  flood  heights  to  such  amounts  that  many  districts  must  be 
flooded  when  an  unusual  freshet  occurs. 

It  has  further  been  shown  that  the  fish  yield  which  rapidly  increased, 
up  to  1908  has  since  that  time  rapidly  declined,  having  been  greatly 
affected  by  the  reduction  in  breeding  and  feeding  grounds  brought  about 
through  the  construction  of  agricultural  levee  districts  and  the  exclusion 
of  the  flood  waters  from  these  lands,  on  which  flooded  lands  the  fish 
breed  and  the  early  development  of  the  young  fish  takes  place. 

It  remains  to  select  the  best  remedy  for  these  unfavorable  conditions 
and  tendencies,  and  in  so  doing,  it  will  perhaps,  be  most  useful  briefly 
to  point  out  the  various  remedies  more  or  less  applicable  to  the  existing 
situation  to  show  how  each  would  affect  the  problem  in  hand,  and  if 
possible,  to  select  from  these  remedies,  the  one  best  fitted  to  accomplish 
the  maximum  of  good  in  the  light  of  the  circumstances  as  they  exist  at 
present  and  in  the  future  so  far  as  we  are  privileged  to  read  the  future. 

In  the  application  of  corrective  measures,  it  will  be  kept  in  mind 
that  the  bottom  land  levee  districts  are  producing  at  the  present  time 
agricultural  products  to  the  value  of  about  three  million  dollars  per 
annum,  at  the  average  prices  of  the  past  few  years.  There  is  good 
prospect  that  this  yield  will  soon  be  increased  to  six  or  seven  million 
dollars.  The  Illinois  Eiver  fishery  in  1908  yielded  $721,000  with  fish 
at  an  average  price  of  three  cents  per  pound.  At  European  wholesale 
prices,  ten  to  fifteen  cents  per  pound,  this  catch  would  have  been  worth 
from  two  and  one-half  to  three  and  one-half  million  dollars.  Nineteen 
hundred  and  eight  was  a  banner  fishing  year. 

It  would  seem  therefore,  that  from  a  financial  standpoint,  agricul¬ 
ture  is  the  predominant  interest,  but  that  the  fisheries  have  great  future 
possibilities  and  should  be  given  all  possible  consideration  in  the  im¬ 
provement  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  valley  conditions. 

OUTLINE  OF  EEMEDIES. 

It  is  doubtful  if  anyone  will  seriouslv  consider  the  abandonment  of 
the  investments  in  the  valley  and  the  reverting;  to  conditions  of  nature 
which  would  be  likely  to  correct  the  present  difficulties.  For  obvious 
reasons  it  is  out  of  the  question  that  we  go  back  to  the  days  of  the  buffalo 
and  the  Indian. 

Eeferring  particularly  to  the  flood  situation,  the  remedies  are  of  two 
classes,  first,  channel  improvements,  and  second,  storage. 

Channel  improvements  will  include  all  means  of  providing  a  more 
adequate  waterway  for  the  passage  of  the  floods.  This  may  be  accom¬ 
plished  in  a  number  of  ways  as  follows : 

113 


— 8  R  L 


114 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

(a)  Through  increasing  the  height  of  the  agricultural  levees, 
thereby  permitting  the  Hood  waters  to  occupy  a  greater  cross-section 
without  hooding  the  farm  lands. 

(b)  Through  lowering  the  bed  of  the  channel,  perhaps  through 
cooperation  with  one  of  the  several  plans  for  a  deep  waterway. 

(c)  Through  greater  widths  between  levees  where  same  are  built 
on  both  sides  of  the  stream  or  elsewhere  by  setting  the  levees  back  at 
greater  distances  from  the  river.  This  is  hardly  a  practicable  remedy 
where  the  levees  have  been  built.  It  is  easily  applicable,  however,  to 
future  levee  construction. 

Storage  if  properly  applied,  will  be  efficacious  in  reducing  the  rate 
of  flow  at  critical  periods  in  a  flood,  and  hence  it  would  have  a  tendency 
to  reduce  maximum  flood  heights.  Storage  may  be  beneficially  applied 
to  the  Illinois  Eiver  in  two  ways : 

(a)  Through  storage  in  the  Illinois  Eiver  bottoms, 

and 

(b)  Through  storage  in  the  valleys  of  the  tributaries. 

It  will  be  useful  to  this  problem  to  determine  approximately  how  far 
each  of  these  remedies  might  be  effective,  and  as  the  effects  of  some  of 
them  are  quite  complex,  it  will  be  well  to  examine  them  carefull}\ 
Storage  is,  perhaps,  the  most  difficult  to  apply,  and  as  it  has  some  attrac¬ 
tive  possibilities,  we  will  consider  it  first. 

FLOOD  ABATEMENT  BY  STOEAGE. 

The  reduction  of  floods  through  storage,  although  it  has  only  lately 
claimed  public  attention  in  this  country,  is  not  a  new  remedy  either  at 
home  or  abroad.  Europe  furnishes  us  numerous  examples  of  large 
reservoirs  built  for  the  storage  of  flood  waters;  and  particularly  in  France, 
in  Spain  and  in  Germany,  the  practice  has  been  followed  more  or  less  for 
two  hundred  years.  Within  the  last  twenty  years,  a  great  number  of 
these  reservoirs  have  been  built  in  Germany  and  in  Austria. 

In  the  LTiited  States  six  very  large  reservoirs  have  been  built  for 
the  control  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  Eiver.  This  work  was  started  in 
1881,  and  completed  in  1895.  Perhaps  the  chief  duty  of  these  reservoirs 
is  the  improvement  of  low  water  conditions  in  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
but  they  have  also  a  marked  effect  upon  the  flood  heights  above  St.  Paul. 

The  Pittsburgh  Flood  Commission  reporting  under  date  of  April, 
1912,  recommended  storage  reservoirs  as  a  correction  for  the  flood  con¬ 
ditions  of  the  Ohio  Eiver  at  Pittsburgh. 

Eeservoirs  were  considered  for  the  flood  protection  of  Columbus, 
Ohio,  and  while  channel  improvements  were  selected  as  the  most  effective 
remedy,  it  was  demonstrated  that  reservoir  sites  in  the  valleys  of  the 
rivers  adjacent  to  Columbus  aggregating  about  125,000  acre-feet,  would 
have  been  effective  in  reducing  a  140,000  second-feet  flood  to  about 
78.000  second-feet,  a  reduction  of  45  per  cent.  This  was  on  the  Lower 
Scioto  Eiver  having  a  drainage  area  of  1,570  square  miles. 

Storage  reservoirs  have  been  adopted  as  the  remedy  for  the  con¬ 
ditions  producing  the  Dayton  disaster  on  the  Miami  Eiver.  It  is  esti¬ 
mated  that  seven  reservoirs  having  a  capacity  of  60,000,000,000  cubic 
feet,  or  1,400,000  acre-feet,  would  have  been  effective  in  reducing  the 
March,  1913,  flood  of  250,000  second-feet  from  a  drainage  area  of 
2,500  square  miles  by  the  amount  of  75  per  cent. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES 


115 


TENDENCY  OF  LEVEES  TO  INCREASE  FLOW  RATES. 

Elsewhere  in  this  report  it  has  been  pointed  out  that  the  storage  in 
the  capacious  bottom  lands  of  the  Illinois  River  tends  to  reduce  the 
maximum  rate  at  which  the  water  is  delivered  to  the  Mississippi,  and 
also  to  a  certain  extent,  to  reduce  the  flow  at  all  places  on  the  Illinois 
River. 


Effect 


Diaqram  showing 

or  River  Valuev  Storage 

ON 


Flood  Rate  at  Kampsville  Dam 


“To  Accompory  the  Report  of 

Alvoro  &  Burdick 

Engineers. 


A 

B 


Indicate?  -flood  rote  of  1004- 
flood.  , 

Indicafes  eehimated  flood  rate  with 
?anr*e  inflow  cf  wafer  but  wifh  valley 
oforage  reduced  a?  o&  pregert. 

Indicates  neeulting  rate?  wifh  game 
Inflow  but  with  the  whole  valley  improved 
to  the  same  extent  that  now  prevail? 
between  Kampevllle  and  LaSrange. 


O 

z 

o 

Id 

<0 

ft 

lu 

Q. 

h 

Li 

Id 

IL 

CD 

o 

Q 

Z 

< 

<f> 

o 

fE 


Id 

1 

> 

s 

5 


h 

< 

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O 

J 

IL 


5  10  15  20  21 
JANUARY 


i  idrfi  20  21 

FEBRUARY 


5  10  11 20  21 
MARCH 


1  10  II  20  25 
APRIL 


1  10  15  20  21 
MAY 


5  10  IS  20  25 

JUNE 


1  10  15  20  25 

JULY 


Month  and  Day -1904- 


figure  35 


116 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


The  construction  of  the  agricultural  levee  districts  has  not  only 
decreased  the  cross-section  through  which  the  flood  waters  might  escape, 
but  has  also  robbed  the  valley  of  a  large  part  of  its  storage,  thereby 
tending  to  increase  the  rate  of  run-off  in  the  stream. 

Elsewhere  in  this  report  we  have  presented  diagrams  giving  the 
area  in  the  river  valley  that  is  overflowed  at  various  heights  of  water. 
From  these  diagrams  it  is  practicable  to  compute  the  volume  of  the 
storage  in  the  river  valley  when  the  same  is  flooded  to  any  depth  below 
the  high  water  of  1844,  the  highest  water  of  record. 

In  order  to  determine  approximately  the  effect  of  the  levee  opera¬ 
tions  on  the  maximum  flood  flow  rate,  we  have  prepared  Fig.  35  which 
is  a  hydrograph  of  the  flow  rates  estimated  to  have  existed  at  the  Ivamps- 
ville  Dam  during  the  flood  of  1904.  This  hydrograph  is  based  on  the 
rating  curve  at  Pearl  a  short  distance  above  Kampsville,  and  although 
it  is  doubtless  more  or  less  in  error,  particularly  in  the  latter  part  of 
the  flood  through  the  influence  of  the  Mississippi  Eiver,  it  is  believed  to 
represent  the  facts  with  sufficient  accuracy  to  determine  approximately 
the  effect  of  the  bottom  lands’  storage. 

Deferring  to  Fig.  35  the  line  marked  “x4”  is  the  hydrograph  of  flow 
of  the  1904  flood.  It  will  be  observed  that  this  flood  reached  a  maximum 
of  about  115,000  second-feet. 

Line  “B”  represents  the  estimated  flow  rates  near  the  apex  of  the 
flood  should  the  flood  of  1904  be  repeated,  but  with  the  valley  storage 
reduced  as  at  present,  with  the  districts  under  construction  completed. 
Under  these  conditions  it  is  estimated  that  the  run-off  rate  at  Kamps¬ 
ville  would  be  12 1,000  second  feet. 

Curve  marked  “C”  is  the  estimated  flow  rate  near  the  apex  of  the 
flood,  assuming  the  inflow  to  the  river  valley  to  have  been  the  same  as  in 
the  flood  of  1904,  but  with  the  whole  valley  improved  to  the  same  extent 
that  now  prevails  between  Kampsville  and  LaGrange,  that  is,  assuming 
that  practically  the  entire  river  from  Kampsville  to  La  Salle  is  confined 
between  levees.  Under  these  circumstances,  it  is  estimated  that  the 
inflow  of  the  valley  in  1904  would  have  resulted  in  a  flood  rate  of 
126,000  second  feet  at  Kampsville. 

These  modified  flow  hydrographs  have  been  estimated  upon  the 
assumption  that  the  rate  of  flow  passing  Kampsville  is  the  summation 
of  the  inflow  rates  to  the  river  valley  plus  or  minus  the  gain  or  depletion 
in  the  river  valley  storage  as  produced  by  rising  or  falling  stages. 

Inasmuch  as  crest  rates  were  principally  of  significance,  it  was  not 
thought  necessary  that  the  computation  should  cover  the  entire  flood. 
In  estimating  the  amount  of  water  going  into  and  coming  out  of  the 
vallev  storage,  the  river  was  taken  section  bv  section.  This  was  neces- 
sary  inasmuch  as  at  some  times  during  the  flood,  the  storage  was  building 
in  certain  parts  of  the  river,  and  depleting  at  certain  other  places  above 
Kampsville. 

The  total  storage  in  the  levee  districts  as  now  completed,  or  in 
process  of  construction  above  Kampsville  between  low  water  plane  of 
1901  and  the  high  water  plane  of  1904,  is  estimated  at  920,000  acre-feet. 

The  total  amount  of  storage  above  Kampsville  within  all  levee  dis¬ 
tricts,  assuming  that  the  river  is  leveed-in  about  to  the  same  extent  as 


FIGURE  38. 


Map  Of 

Illinois  River  \  Flood  Plain 

Below  LaSalle 


Tb  Accompany  The  Report  Op 
Alvord  ft  Burdick 

CN6INCCP9 


Gage  H eights  on  Beardstown  Gage 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES.  117 


Storage  in  Million  Acre  Feet 

EXPLANATION 
Storage  in  present  districts  now 
completed  or  under  construction 

P  Storage  in  probable  future  districts. 

C  Total  available  storage  in  all  levee  «-s  _ _ _  .  ^ 

districts-  present  and  future.  DIAGRAM  SHOWING 

Storage  in  Levee  Districts 

in  THE 

Illinois  River  Valley 

To  Accompany  the  Report  of" 

Alvord  &  Burdick 

Engineers  Chicago. 

FIGURE  37. 


118 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


now  prevails  between  Kampsville  and  La  Grange,  is  estimated  at  about 
1,920,000  acre-feet. 

It  is  estimated,  therefore,  that  robbing  the  valley  of  920,000  acre- 
feet  would  increase  the  flood  rate  of  1904  by  only  about  5  per  cent,  and 
that  the  ultimate  possible  levee  operations  would  tend  to  increase  the 
flood  rate  only  slightly  more  than  10  per  cent. 

The  reason  for  the  small  effect  of  such  a  large  alteration  in  the 
river  bottom  storage  doubtless  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  storage  is  largely 
used  up  before  the  flood  reaches  its  apex,  and  as  the  flood  remains  nearly 
stationary  for  several  days  at  the  apex,  it  is  only  a  fraction  of  the  upper 
foot  of  the  valley  storage  that  has  an  important  effect  on  the  maximum 
flow  rates  of  the  Illinois  Eiver.  Therefore,  although  the  construction  of 
levee  districts  on  the  bottom  lands  has  a  restrictive  effect  on  the  passage 
of  floods,  as  has  been  previously  pointed  out,  the  construction  of  these 
districts  has  a  minor  effect  only  upon  the  flow  rates  in  depriving  the 
stream  of  its  valley  storage. 

As  is  pointed  out  later,  this  does  not  prevent  the  river  storage 
artificially  handled  from  producing  an  important  effect  upon  the  maxi¬ 
mum  flow  of  the  stream ;  thus,  if  the  levee  districts  may  have  the  water 
excluded  from  them  until  the  flood  begins  to  approach  its  apex  and  can 
then  be  utilized  to  the  full  capacity  of  the  districts  to  reduce  the  flood 
apex,  large  effects  may  be  produced. 

EFFECT  OF  APEX  STOEAGE. 

In  order  that  it  may  be  determined  what  effects  are  practicable  by 
storing  a  portion  of  the  flow  near  the  apex  of  great  floods  in  certain  of 
the  levee  districts  built  or  hereafter  to  be  built  in  the  valley  of  the 
Illinois  Eiver,  the  estimates  which  follow  have  been  made. 

THE  FUTUEE  EIYEE  VALLEY. 

Out  of  about  398,000  acres  below  La  Salle  lying  below  the  water 
surface  of  the  great  flood  of  1844,  it  will  be  recalled  that  a  total  of  about 
171,125  acres  comprise  lands  now  leveed  or  around  which  levees  are 
now  in  process  of  construction,  and  about  49,250  acres  comprise  lands 
for  the  protection  of  which  levees  have  been  proposed  or  are  in  con¬ 
templation  at  this  time.  We  estimate  that  there  is  an  additional  area 
of  about  75,400  acres  that  will  ultimately  be  leveed  probably  at  no  dis¬ 
tant  time.  This  leaves  about  100,000  acres  which  includes  the  river  bed 
amounting  to  28,490  acres  at  the  low  water  plane  of  1901,  leaving 
slightly  over  70,000  acres  comprising  the  river  banks  outside  of  the  levee 
systems,  small  areas  where  it  is  deemed  probable  no  levees  will  be  built 
on  account  of  the  narrow  bottom  lands,  and  particularly  the  rapidly 
rising  bottoms  where  the  river  skirts  the  bluffs  which  bound  the  valley. 

Fig.  36  shows  levee  districts  now  built,  the  districts  at  present 
proposed,  and  the  probable  future  districts. 

Fig.  37  shows  diagrammatically  the  amount  of  acre-feet  stored 
within  the  levee  districts  for  various  stages  of  water.  Curves  are 
shown  for : 

“A”  Storage  in  present  levee  districts. 

“B”  Storage  in  future  levee  districts. 

“C”  Total  storage  in  all  districts  present  and  future. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


119 


The  exhibit  referred  .to  shows  the  above  facts  for  the  valley  above 
Peoria;  also  for  the  valley  above  the  La  Grange  dam  and  for  the  valley 
above  the  Kampsville  dam.  In  each  case  La  Salle  is  the  upstream  limit 
of  the  computed  storage. 

In  all  cases  the  storage  is  expressed  in  acre-feet,  an  acre-foot  being 
equivalent  to  one  acre  flooded  to  a  depth  of  one  foot. 


FIGURE  38. 


120 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 

Stage  of  river  is  expressed  in  gage  height  at  Beardstown.  This 
place  is  selected  as  being  perhaps  more  significant  over  the  long  stretch 
of  river  than  any  other  single  gage  upon  the  stream. 

At  the  high  water  plane  of  1904,  the  total  storage  inside  of  all 
levee  districts  present  and  probable  future,  is  estimated  as  follows : 

In  districts  now  constructed  or  in  process  of  construction. .  .920,000  acre-feet 

In  districts  now  proposed . 425,000  acre-feet 

In  future  districts . 575,000  acre-feet 

EFFECT  OF  STORAGE  OX  FLOW. 

From  the  rating  curve  at  Peoria,  and  the  daily  gage  heights  during 
the  flood  of  1904,  a  hydrograph  of  flow  during  the  flood  was  constructed, 
and  from  this  hydrograph  there  was  computed  the  amount  of  storage 
that  would  have  been  required  to  reduce  the  flow  rates  near  the  apex 
of  the  flood  to  various  lesser  flow  rates.  Table  Xo.  39  shows  this  com¬ 
putation,  and  it  also  shows  a  similar  computation  for  a  flood  about  35 
per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904,  assuming  the  greater  flood  to 
have  exceeded  the  1904  flood  by  the  same  percentage  on  every  day  during 
the  flood. 


TABLE  NO.  39— STORAGE  REQUIRED  TO  REDUCE  FLOOD  RATE  ON  ILLINOIS 

RIVER  AT  PEORIA. 


1904  flood  (80,000  second-feet.) 


Average  flow  rate  prevailing  for — 

Reduced 
flood  rate 
for  corre¬ 
sponding 
period- 
second- feet. 

Difference 
or  second- 
feet  to  go 
into 
storage. 

Storage 
required — 
acre-feet. 

Time— days. 

Rate— 

second-feet. 

7.  5 . 

75. 700 
70. 800 
65, 100 

60. 700 

70, 000 
60,000 
50,  000 
40,  000 

5,700 
10, 800 
15, 100 
20, 700 

85,000 
283, 000 
600,000 
1,070,000 

14.  0 . 

20.  0 . 

26.  0 . 

A  greater  flood  (110,000  second-feet.) 


6.0 . 

105,400 
99, 800 
95, 500 
91, 000 

100,000 
90,000 
80,  000 

5,400 
9, 800 
15, 500 
21,  000 

64,000 

11.  0 . 

214  ',  000 
480,000 
840,000 
1, 260,  000 

16.0 . 

20.0 . 

70',  000 
60, 000 

24.  5 . 

86, 000 

26;  000 

Note. — Greater  flood  assumed  to  be  about  35  per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904,  upon  each  day 
of  the  flood. 

The  effect  of  apex  storage,  as  above  computed,  is  shown  diagram¬ 
matic-ally  upon  Fig.  38.  It  is  assumed  that  the  storage  would  be  utilized 
at  the  proper  moment  and  in  the  exact  proper  amount  to  produce  the 
maximum  effect  with  the  acre-feet  in  storage  capacity  available. 

At  the  right  of  the  diagram  will  be  found  the  gage  heights  cor¬ 
responding  to  the  flows  appearing  on  the  left  side  of  the  diagram.  Two 
scales  of  gage  height  are  shown :  the  first  corresponding  to  the  virgin 
river,  that  is,  as  it  existed  prior  to  1904;  and  second,  our  estimate  of 
the  gage  heights  that  would  usually  prevail  under  the  flows  as  shown 
at  the  left  of  the  diagram  in  the  river  valley  when  all  the  bottom  lands 
are  reclaimed. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


121 


A  comparison  of  these  two  gage  height  scales  indicates  that  below 
17  feet  on  the  gage,  the  construction  of  levee  districts  has  small  effect 
upon  the  stage  of  water.  It  is  only  at  the  stages  which  produce  con¬ 
siderable  bottom  land  flooding  and  induce  substantial  flows  on  the  bottom 
lands  that  the  effect  of  the  levees  begins  to  be  felt. 


FIGURE  39. 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


99 

-  .‘v 


The  estimate  of  future  gage  height  under  a  completely  leveed 
river  is  based  upon  a  computation  of  the  gage  height  of  a  great  flood 
(about  35  per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904)  entering  the  Missis¬ 
sippi  River  at  the  level  of  the  flood  of  1844.  It  has  been  assumed  that 
the  new  rating  curve  will  coincide  with  the  old  rating  curve  at  a  hank- 
full  stage,  and  it  is  further  assumed  that  the  new  rating  curve  would 
vary  in  approximately  a  uniform  manner  for  stages  between  these 
extremes.  In  platting  the  rating  curves  for  the  unleveed  river,  it  was 
observed  that  above  the  bank-full  stage  the  flowT  increases  more  rapidly 
than  the  gage  height  on  account  of  the  water  traveling  by  way  of  the 
wide  bottoms.  With  a  completely  leveed  river  it  would  he  expected  that 
the  flows  for  the  higher  gage  readings  might  he  approximated  by  pro¬ 
jecting  the  gage  curve  for  stages  less  than  hank-full.  It  was  observed 
that  the  curve  computed  in  the  manner  above  explained,  corresponds 
fairly  well  to  the  rating  curve  thus  projected. 

Fig.  39  illustrates  the  effect  of  the  various  amounts  of  storage  above 
La  Grange.  This  diagram  has  been  computed  in  the  manner  previously 
explained  for  Peoria. 

PROPER  LEVEE  HEIGHTS  WITHOUT  STORAGE. 

Referring  to  Fig.  33  which  is  a  resume  of  the  maximum  flood  flow 
profiles  computed  and  observed,  the  profile  marked  “H”  is  the  estimated 
surface  of  a  flood  about  35  per  cent  greater  than  the  flood  of  1904 
assumed  to  enter  the  Mississippi  River  at  the  datum  elevation  of  the 
flood  of  1844,  and  to  traverse  a  river  valley  completely  leveed  between 
La  Salle  and  Grafton.  It  has  been  previously  concluded  that  this  repre¬ 
sents  a  condition  which  might  be  expected  to  occur  about  once  in  fifty 
years  upon  the  average.  It  would  seem  reasonable  to  increase  the  height 
of  all  levees  where  necessary,  to  pass  a  flood  of  this  magnitude  without 
danger  to  the  levee  system.  In  our  opinion  it  would  be  good  policy  to 
build  all  levees  up  to  a  height  equivalent  to  3  feet  above  the  estimated 
water  plane  “H,”  corresponding  to  the  line  “L”  on  Fig.  34. 

LEVEE  HEIGHTS  WITH  APEX  STORAGE. 

The  levee  districts  now  built  are  not  provided  with  facilities  for 
using  them'  as  flood  storage  reservoirs  in  emergencies,  and  many  of  them 
are  so  improved  that  flooding  would  be  disastrous.  It  will  be  less  diffi¬ 
cult  to  flood  the  districts  to  he  constructed  hereafter,  for  the  bottom 
lands  are  less  in  width  and  it  will  be  therefore,  easier  to  farm  them 
from  dwellings  built  on  ground  above  the  high  water  plane. 

For  purposes  of  estimate  we  would  assume  that  all  districts  con¬ 
structed  hereafter  will  be  so  built  as  to  lie  usable  for  flood  storage  pur¬ 
poses,  and  will  endeavor  to  ascertain  the  effect  upon  the  maximum  flood 
heights  of  the  stream.  Referring  to  Fig.  33  it  will  be  observed  that  at 
Kampsville,  very  little  can  he  accomplished  in  a  great  flood  through  the 
storage  of  flood  waters,  for  the  fall  from  Kampsville  to  Grafton  is  only 
about  2  feet  under  the  conditions  of  1844.  If  the  whole  flood  were 
stored  above  Kampsville,  the  flood  could  therefore  not  be  reduced  more 
than  2  feet.  It  is  probably  impracticable  to  accomplish  anything  mate¬ 
rial  by  storage  at  this  place. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


123 


At  Beardstown  much  of  the  effect  of  the  Mississippi  Biver  has 
disappeared.  The  Illinois  Biver  predominates  in  the  relation  between 
flow  and  gage-height.  Bef erring  to  Fig.  39  showing  the  relation  be¬ 
tween  flow  and  storage  at  La  Grange  immediately  below  Beardstown, 
and  Fig.  37  showing  the  acre-feet  in  storage  above  the  La  Grange  dam — 
it  is  indicated  that  in  a  great  flood  there  would  be  about  850,000  acre- 
feet  of  storage  above  La  Grange  in  future  levee  districts  (Curve  “B”) 
which,  if  used  to  the  best  advantage,  would  reduce  a  flood  of  143,000 
second-feet  to  108,000  second-feet.  Without  storage,  the  gage  height 
would  be  about  28  feet,  and  with  the  storage  stated,  about  24.6  feet, 
a  difference  of  about  3.4  feet  at  Beardstown. 

A  similar  comparison  at  Peoria  based  on  Fig.  38  and  the  diagram 
of  storage  above  Peoria— Fig.  37  indicates  that  the  available  storage 
above  Peoria  would  be  instrumental  in  reducing  the  height  of  the  great 
flood  about  2%  feet,  if  used  at  the  proper  time  and  the  water  diverted  to 
storage  at  proper  rates  to  produce  the  maximum  effect. 

The  line  “K,”  Fig.  34  is  drawn  to  roughly  represent  the  top  of  the 
levees  that  would  be  considered  reasonably  safe  if  the  storage  in  all 
future  leveed  districts  could  be  utilized  as  apex  storage  for  flood  waters 
when  needed.  This  curve  coincides  with  curve  “L”  at  Kampsville, 
departs  uniformly  from  curve  “L”  to  a  maximum  departure  of  3.4  feet 
at  Beardstown,  and  gradually  approaches  curve  “L”  to  a  departure  of 
2.5  feet  at  Peoria,  retaining  the  same  relation  above  Peoria.  An  approxi¬ 
mate  estimate,  therefore,  indicates  that  the  storage  stated  would  have  the 
effect  of  reducing  the  practicable  levee  heights  in  amount,  varying  from 
nothing  at  Kampsville  to  3.4  feet  at  Beardstown,  and  2.5  feet  at  Peoria. 
With  this  information  in  hand,  it  would  be  practicable  to  estimate  the 
future  expenditures  that  will  be  required  to  build  the  future  levee  dis¬ 
tricts  up  to  these  profiles,  and  also  to  increase  the  height  of  the  existing 
districts  so  as  to  make  them  safe  from  overflow  on  the  two  assumptions 
above. 

BASIS  OF  COMPABISOX. 

Two  procedures  confront  us : 

"First — To  build  the  levees  to  such  height  that  future  floods  may  be 
safely  passed  under  the  conditions  when  all  the  bottom  lands  are  re¬ 
claimed,  all  districts  being  used  for  agriculture  and  kept  dry  by  pumping, 
and 

“Second — The  construction  of  the  levees  only  to  such  height  as  will 
be  sufficient  to  pass  the  floods  when  using  future  levee  districts  to  store 
flood  water  in  a  great  flood.” 

It  will  be  sufficient  for  our  present  purpose  in  making  a  financial 
comparison  of  these  projects,  to  consider  only  the  total  moneys  that  must 
be  hereafter  expended  without  regard  to  who  furnishes  the  money;  to 
estimate  the  total  revenues  that  may  be  produced  by  these  bottoms — land 
and  water — and  to  estimate  comparative  annual  expenditures;  all  with¬ 
out  regard  to  where  the  money  comes  from  or  who  is  benefited  by  the 
works  built. 

A  comparison  upon  the  above  basis  is  enlightening  for  the  reason 
that  the  State  is  interested  in  seeing  improvements  accomplished  that 
will  produce  the  maximum  of  good — -in  this  case,  the  maximum  of  food 
for  a  given  expenditure,  and  a  comparative  annual  operating  cost. 


124 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


NEW  EXPENDITURES  WITH  HIGH  LEVEES  AND  NO 

STORAGE. 

If  the  levees,  present  and  future,  are  built  up  to  the  profile  “L,” 
(Fig.  34)  we  estimate  that  the  following  expenditures  will  be  involved: 
Embankments  to  increase  existing  levees  at  13c  per 

cubic  yard . $2,240,000 

Stripping  old  levees  at  $1,500  per  mile .  292,000 

-  $2,532,000 

Levees  immediately  proposed  at  12c  per  cubic  yard. ..  .$1,750,000 
Interior  improvements  including  pumping  plants  and 

tile  drainage  at  $7.50  per  acre . . .  369,500 

-  2,119,500 

Distant  future  levees  at  12c  per  cubic  yard . $2,937,000 

Interior  improvements,  pumping  plants  and  tile  drainage 

at  $7.50  per  acre .  565,800 

-  3,502,800 


Total . $8,154,300 

If  future  levee  districts  are  utilized  for  storage  so  that  all  levees 
may  be  constructed  with  tops  corresponding  to  profile  “K,”  Fig.  34, 
and  assuming  that  future  levee  districts  will  be  used  for  flood  storage 
and  fish  culture  only,  pumping  plants  and  tile  drainage  being  omitted, 
but  the  levees  being  equipped  with  flood  gates  by  which  flood  wTater  can 
be  discharged  into  each  district  at  a  rate  of  about  5,000  cubic  feet  per 
second,  the  estimated  cost  would  be  as  follows: 


Old  levees  raised  at  13c  per  cubic  yard . $1,300,000 

Stripping  at  $1,500  per  mile .  292,000 

-  $1,592,000 

Levees  now  proposed  at  12c  per  cubic  yard . :  $1,291,000 

Flood  gates .  100,000 

-  1,391,000 

Distant  future  levees  at  12c  per  cubic  yard . $2,256,000 

Flood  gates .  '150,000 

-  2,406,000 


Total . $5,389,000 


COMPARATIVE  INCOME  AND  EXPENSE. 

For  purposes  of  comparison,  we  will  assume  that  the  operating  cost 
of  the  agricultural  levee  districts  is  substantiallv  the  same  as  would  be 
the  cost  of  levee  districts  for  the  storage  of  flood  waters  and  fish  culture. 
We  would  further  assume  that  90  per  cent  of  the  land  enclosed  in  agri¬ 
cultural  levee  districts  produces  $27.00  per  acre  per  annum,  which  is 
the  estimated  acre  yield  of  the  past  few  years. 

We  would  further  assume  that  if  the  river  is  completely  leveed,  and 
the  bottoms  used  for  agriculture,  the  commercial  fisheiw  of  the  Illinois 
River  will  have  disappeared.  This  assumption  will  be  favorable  to 
storage.  We  would  further  assume  that  the  total  yield  of  fish  from  the 
Illinois  River  will  be  one  hundred  pounds  of  fish  per  annum  per  acre  of 
water  surface  prevailing  for  about  half  the  year.  This  seems  to  have 
been  approximately  the  yield  prevailing  in  the  past.  (See  Fig.  26.)  At 
three  cents  per  pound,  the  present  American  price,  this  would  be  $3.00 
per  acre  of  total  water  surface.  At  fifteen  cents  per  pound,  a  price  often 
received  in  Europe  at  the  present  time,  this  would  amount  to  $15.00  per 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


125 


acre.  These  yields  per  acre  cannot  be  compared  with  the  yield  per  acre 
for  agricultural  purposes ;  for  the  fish  yield  as  thus  computed,  applies  to 
the  river  surface  as  well  as  the  land  that  may  be  flooded,  whereas  the 
acre  yield  from  agriculture  applies  only  to  land. 

For  purposes  of  general  comparison,  we  have  prepared  Table  No.  40 
which  summarizes  the  additional  investments  hereinbefore  estimated, 
and  estimates  the  return  from  agriculture  and  fisheries.  The  return 
from  fishes  has  been  estimated  upon  the  assumption  that  the  flood 
storage  districts  will  retain  water  during  the  major  part  of  the  spring 
and  summer  season,  as  may  be  most  desirable  to  promote  the  fishery, 
the  reservoirs  being  emptied  in  the  late  fall  or  winter  in  order  that  they 
may  be  available  for  flood  storage  in  the  following  spring.  The  acreage 
for  computing  total  yield  is  based  upon  the  total  area  of  the  leveed 
district. 


TABLE  NO.  40— COMPARATIVE  COSTS  AND  BENEFITS  OF  TWO  PLANS  FOR 

FLOOD  PROTECTION. 


• 

High 

levees  as  per 
profile 
“L”. 

Lower 
levees  as  per 
profile 
“K”. 

Nostorage. 

Storage. 

Net  investment . 

$8,  254, 300 

$5, 389, 000 

Annual  Benefits ,  Past  Prices — 

From  agriculture1 . 

$7,  200,  000 

$4, 150,  000 
567,  000 

From  fisheries2 . 

Less  interest  on  new  investment  at  6  per  cent . 

$7,  200.  000 
490,  000 

$4,  717, 000 
323,  000 

Net  comparative  benefit . 

$6,  700,  000 

$4,  394,  000 

Annual  Benefits  at  German  Prices  for  Fish — 

From  agriculture . 

$7,  200,  000 

$4, 150,  000 
2,  830,  000 

From  fisheries3 . 

Less  interest  on  new  investment  at  6  per  cent  . 

$7,  200,  000 
490,  000 

$6,  657,  000 
323,  000 

Net  comparative  benefit . 

$6,  710,  000 

$6, 334,  000 

1  Return  from  agriculture  at  $27  per  acre  on  90  per  cent  of  land  in  districts. 

2  At  3  cents  per  pound. 

3  At  15  cents  per  pound. 


It  has  been  assumed  that  all  expenses  incident  to  the  administration 
of  agricultural  levee  districts  and  the  flood  storage  districts  will  be  the 
same,  the  only  difference  in  the  outgo  being  differences  in  the  rental 
values  of  the  moneys  that  would  be  necessarily  invested.  An  allow¬ 
ance  has  been  made  for  interest  on  the  investment  at  6  per  cent. 

Comparisons  have  been  made  upon  two  bases,  namely,  with  fish  at 
the  present  price  of  three  cents  per  pound,  and  with  fish  at  prices  which 
may  be  reached  in  the  future,  it  being  assumed  that  the  future  may 
produce  prices  equivalent  to  the  present  German  prices — about  15  cents 
per  pound. 

An  examination  of  Table  No.  40  would  appear  to  indicate  that  with 
fish  at  the  present  price,  the  use  of  all  the  bottom  lands  for  agriculture 
will  return  to  the  community  over  two  million  dollars  more  per  year 
than  could  be  secured  by  constructing  lower  levees  and  using  them  for 


REPORT  OX  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


12  f) 

fish  culture  and  flood  storage,  the  existing  levees  being  used  for  agri- 
culture  as  at  present.  If,  however,  the  comparison  should  be  made  upon 
the  basis  of  German  fish  prices,  the  comparative  returns  would  be  much 
more  nearly  equal.  The  estimate,  however,  still  indicates  that  a  yearly 
return  of  nearly  $400,000  more  could  be  secured  by  bottom  land 
agriculture.* 

(Regardless  as  to  whether  the  beds  of  lakes  in  the  Illinois  valley 
are  of  most  value  for  agricultural  purposes  for  private  individuals  or  for 
flood  storage  and  fish  breeding  for  the  public  at  large,  the  fact  remains 
that  these  public  waters  and  submerged  lands  cannot  be  seized  by  private 
parties  for  agricultural  purposes  and,  consequently,  the  foregoing 
economic  analyses  must  be  modified  so  as  to  exclude  such  public  sub¬ 
merged  lands. 

Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  of  Illinois.) 
OTHER  CONSIDERATIONS. 

It  is  true  that  if  the  flood  waters  are  excluded  from  the  bottom 
lands,  the  farmers  must  ultimately  resort  to  fertilizers  to  take  the  place 
of  the  benefit  arising  from  the  natural  flood.  Experience  upon  the 
uplands  of  Illinois,  land  that  was  very  rich  when  first  broken,  indicates 
that  within  fifty  or  sixty  years  serious  deterioration  will  have  taken 
place.  It  is  estimated  that  an  annual  flood  would  be  worth  about  one 
dollar  per  acre  per  year  over  a  long  period  of  years,  to  keep  the  bottom 
land  up  to  standard  indefinitely.  It  is  believed  that  this  sum  is  not  suffi¬ 
ciently  large  to  make  it  an  object  to  flood  the  bottom  lands  for  the 
purpose  of  enriching  them,  even  if  done  only  in  occasional  years.  It 
is  believed  that  the  damage  to  structures  other  than  land  would  make 
this  practice  undesirable. 

It  would  be  possible  to  equip  all  levee  districts  with  pumping 
plants,  agricultural  drainage,  as  well  as  flood  gates,  using  a  part  of  the 
districts  each  year  to  store  flood  waters  and  promote  fishing.  They  will 
be  necessary  for  flood  storage  only  in  exceptional  years,  but  if  they  are 
to  promote  the  fisheries,  there  must  be  a  large  acreage  flooded  each  year. 
Xo  gain  can  come  from  this  procedure  except  to  benefit  the  land  for 
agricultural  purposes  or  to  enrich  the  waters  for  the  propagation  of  fish. 
It  is  believed  that  the  gain  from  this  procedure  would  not  he  sufficient  to 
overcome  the  damages  involved  in  flooding  the  farm  lands,  for  the  benefit 
to  the  farm  lands  would  probably  not  exceed  one  dollar  per  acre  per 
annum,  and  it  is  questionable  how  much  the  alternate  farming  and 
fishing  would  benefit  the  yield  of  fish.  It  seems  probable  that  a  large 
amount  of  vegetation  might  he  grown  in  the  flood  storage  reservoirs  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  summer  and  early  fall — perhaps  sufficient  to  answer 
all  the  purposes  of  enriching  the  fish  waters. 

EFFECT  OF  WATERWAY  PROJECTS. 

9 

In  order  to  determine  approximately  the  effect  upon  flood  water 
heights  that  might  be  occasioned  by  various  projects  heretofore  proposed 
for  improvement  of  navigation,  we  have  given  some  consideration  to 
three  projects  that  have  received  considerable  attention,  namely,  the 
Fourteen  Foot  Waterway,  carefully  investigated  by  the  T.  S.  Board  of 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


127 


Engineers,  The  Deep  Waterway,  as  proposed  by  the  Illinois  Internal 
Improvement  Commission,  and  the  more  recent  Eight  Foot  Waterway 
Link  connecting  the  drainage  canal  with  the  Illinois  River  at  the  head 
of  navigation. 

None  of  these  projects  will  so  affect  the  flood  water  cross-sections 
as  to  be  of  material  aid,  or  to  prevent  the  wisdom  of  increasing  the  height 
of  the  agricultural  levees. 

The  eight  foot  project  requires  only  a  small  amount  of  dredging  in 
the  lower  river,  and  will  not  affect  the  flood  water  conditions  except  the 
small  effect  produced  by  the  removal  of  the  dams  which  is  understood 
to  be  a  part  of  the  project.  This  effect  is  very  small — probably  not  more 
than  two  or  three  inches  during  extreme  flood. 

It  is  roughly  estimated  that  the  fourteen  foot  waterway  project  will 
affect  extreme  flood  heights  in  amounts  varying  in  different  parts  of  the 
river,  but  not  exceeding  three  inches.  This  does  not  consider  the  affect 
of  the  removal  of  the  dams  which  would  add  slightly  to  the  benefit. 

The  project  of  the  Internal  Improvement  Commission,  although  in 
the  published  bulletin  it  is  not  definitely  stated  as  regards  the  lower 
river,  would  appear  to  have  the  effect  of  reducing  flood  stages  a  little 
more  than  a  foot  at  Peoria  and  Beardstown. 

The  data  at  hand  will  not  permit  of  more  accurate  computations 
than  these. 


IXCREASED  WIDTH  BETWEEX  LEVEES. 

There  are  certain  places  upon  the  river  where  the  bottom  lands  on 
both  sides  of  the  river  are  enclosed  within  levees,  although  for  the  most 
part,  the  river  skirts  the  bluff,  leaving  bottom  lands  only  on  one  side. 

The  expenditures  in  the  levees  already  built  are  too  large  to  warrant 
serious  consideration  of  moving  the  levees  to  positions  further  back 
from  the  river,  thereby  increasing  the  flood  water  cross-section.  To  do 
this  would  involve  great  expense  for  new  levees,  and  would  also  generally 
require  higher  levees,  for  existing  levees  have  generally  been  constructed 
upon  the  highest  ground  which  is  near  the  river  bank,  the  ground 
sloping  off  inland. 

In  building  future  levees,  however,  careful  consideration  should  be 
given  to  the  location  of  the  levees  and  the  treatment  of  the  flood  plain 
between  the  levee  faces  with  the  object  of  maintaining  a  waterway 
adequate  for  the  passage  of  great  floods. 

Under  date  of  September  16,  1910,  Mr.  J.  W.  Woermann,  C.E., 
who  was  assistant  engineer  in  charge  of  the  surveys  in  the  report  of  the 
U.  S.  Engineer  Board  on  a  Fourteen  Foot  Waterway,  reported  to  land- 
owners  relative  to  certain  levee  districts  on  opposite  sides  of  the  river 
located  a  short  distance  below  Pekin. 

In  reply  to  the  question  as  to  how  much  space  it  is  necessary  to 
leave  between  two  levee  districts  in  question,  Mr.  Woermann  among 
other  things  stated : 

“The  actual  discharge  of  the  Illinois  River  in  this  reach  during  the  flood 
of  1904,  according  to  the  discharge  measurements  taken  under  my  direction, 
was  about  95,000  cubic  feet  per  second.  In  other  words,  at  Sturgeon  Island 
it  appears  that  approximately  17,000  cubic  feet  per  second  passed  through 
the  timber  or  beyond  the  tops  of  the  banks.  For  a  similar  flood  this  is  the 
amount  that  should  be  provided  for  outside  of  the  channel  proper.  As  the 
average  velocity  outside  of  the  channel  would  probably  not  exceed  5.0  feet 


128 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


per  second,  this  would  require  a  supplemental  cross-section  of  3,400  square 
feet,  and  as  the  depth  of  the  water  on  top  of  the  banks  was  about  10  feet  at 
this  point,  this  would  mean  a  supplemental  width  of  340  feet,  provided  this 
width  was  clear.  This  is  the  greatest  additional  width  that  is  required  in 
any  part  of  this  reach.  At  this  particular  point,  most  of  this  additional 
width  can  be  secured  by  clearing  Sturgeon  Island.  In  other  words,  the 
cleared  width  at  this  point  should  be  not  less  than  940  feet. 

The  next  most  restricted  section  is  below  the  head  of  Scott’s  Lake* 
marked  Station  756  on  the  government  map;  during  the  flood  of  1904,  the 
discharging  capacity  of  the  river  proper  was  about  87,600  cubic  feet  per 
second,  leaving  about  8,000  cubic  feet  per  second  to  be  carried  outside  of  the 
banks.  For  a  velocity  of  5.0  feet  per  second,  this  would  require  a  supple¬ 
mental  area  of  1,600  square  feet.  As  the  depth  over  the  banks  was  about  8 
feet  at  this  point,  the  supplemental  width  beyond  the  banks  should  amount 
to  not  less  than  200  feet.  In  other  words,  the  cleared  width  at  this  point 
should  be  not  less  than  820  feet. 

To  allow  for  a  factor  of  safety  and  for  the  uncertainty  connected  with 
the  application  of  any  formula  to  a  large  river,  I  would  recommend  that 
800  feet  be  taken  as  the  minimum  width  to  be  kept  clear.  At  Coon  Hollow 
Island  and  the  other  islands  below  it,  the  clearing  of  the  islands  will  give 
sufficient  width.  This  is  an  important  matter  and  must  not  be  neglected. 
If  the  islands  and  banks  are  allowed  to  become  thickly  covered  with  timber 
and  brush,  their  discharging  capacity  may  be  reduced  to  almost  nothing  and 
the  flood  line  may  be  raised  as  much  as  three  or  four  feet.  The  cost  of  the 
clearing  should  be  borne  equally  by  the  two  districts. 

In  regard  to  the  location  of  levees,  it  is  my  opinion  that  the  Spring 
Lake  district  on  the  whole  has  been  quite  liberal.  At  Coon  Hollow  Island 
the  center  line  of  their  levee  is  only  about  210  feet  from  the  low  water  shore 
line  of  1901,  but  in  the  other  sections  this  distance  is  considerably  larger, 
and  in  some  places  much  greater  than  necessary,  as  shown  in  the  accom¬ 
panying  table. 

In  locating  your  levee  I  would  recommend  that  the  center  line  be  placed 
about  250  feet  from  the  low  water  line  of  1901,  passing  between  the  river 
and  the  several  adjoining  lakes,  viz.,  Stillman  Lake  No.  1,  Scott’s  Lake, 
Murray  Lake  and  Kelcey  Lake,  making  the  minimum  distance  between 
center  lines  of  levees  about  1,200  feet.  A  fringe  of  timber  and  brush  100 
feet  wide  is  sufficient  protection  from  wave-wash  and  ice. 

In  your  supplemental  letter  of  September  13  you  state  that  the  Spring 
Lake  levee  is  4  feet  above  high  water  mark.  This  is  not  definite  as  you  do 
not  state  which  high  water.  According  to  the  information  furnished  me  by 
their  attorney,  the  top  of  their  levee  was  5  feet  above  the  high  water  of  1902, 
or  3  feet  above  the  high  water  of  1904,  or  1.0  to  1.5  feet  below  the  high  water 
of  1844.  I  would  recommend  that  you  build  your  levee  at  least  1  foot  above 
the  high  water  of  1844.  The  combination  of  circumstances  which  produced 
that  flood  may  recur  at  any  time.  Furthermore,  it  gives  your  district  a 
valuable  asset  to  have  its  levee  a  little  higher  than  the  one  on  the  opposite 
side.  If,  as  the  result  of  an  ice  gorge  or  failure  to  keep  down  the  timber  and 
brush,  the  river  should  rise  to  an  unexpected  height,  the  overtopping  of  the 
levee  on  the  opposite  side  would  probably  save  your  own.” 

In  our  opinion  no  levees  should  be  permitted  at  a  less  distance 
apart,  center  to  center,  than  the  1,200  feet  recommended  by  Mr.  Woer- 
mann.  It  is  probable  that  in  most  places  widths  of  2,000  feet  can  rea¬ 
sonably  be  secured  without  sacrifice,  all  costs  considered.  This  recom¬ 
mendation  will  apply  as  far  south  as  the  mouth  of  the  Sangamon,  with 
proper  allowances  for  the  increased  drainage  coming  in  below  Pekin. 
This  increased  drainage  is  comparatively  small.  Below  the  Sangamon, 
the  land  is  nearly  all  leveed,  and  there  will  be  comparatively  little 
occasion  to  pass  upon  this  question. 

It  is  probable  that  the  same  allowance  should  be  made  between 
Peoria  and  La  Salle,  for  although  the  drainage  becomes  smaller  at  the 
north,  the  floods  at  La  Salle  are  nearly  as  great  as  those  at  Peoria. 


DISCUSSION  OP  REMEDIES. 


129 


Where  the  floods  must  pass  between  two  lines  of  levees,  we  would 
emphasize  the  matter  spoken  of  by  Mr.  Woermann,  namely,  the  necessity 
for  so  removing  underbrush  and  trees  that  the  full  effect  of  the  cross- 
section  is  secured  after  providing  a  minimum  of  brush  for  protection  of 
the  banks  against  wave  wash.  It  is  a  question  as  to  how  such  bottoms 
shall  be  kept  cleared  on  account  of  the  rapid  growth  of  underbrush.  No 
doubt  much  can  be  accomplished  by  clearing  and  pasturing.  It  is  a 
problem  that  must  be  faced  where  the  river  is  completely  enclosed,  for  it 
will  be  impracticable  to  build  the  levees  high  enough  to  force  the  water 
through  great  lengths  of  bottoms  covered  thickly  with  brush. 

STORAGE  IN  THE  TRIBUTARIES. 

It  has  been  impossible  to  make  a  determinative  study  showing  the 
effect  of  storing  flood  waters  in  the  valleys  of  the  tributaries,  for  the 
purpose  of  reducing  the  flood  rates  upon  the  Illinois  River.  The  means 
at  our  disposal  do  not  permit  of  original  surveys,  and  there  is  no  data 
available  from  which  the  practicabilities  of  the  matter  may  be  definitely 
determined. 

Reservoirs  upon  the  lower  ends  of  the  tributaries  if  properly  dis¬ 
tributed,  will  have  substantially  the  same  effect  as  equal  volumes  in  the 
valley  of  the  Illinois. 

If  reservoir  sites  on  the  tributaries  could  be  secured  of  such  character 
that  the  average  depth  of  the  stored  water  materially  exceeds  the  average 
depths  in  the  valley  of  the  Illinois,  then  possibly  there  might  be  some 
advantage  in  utilizing  such  tributary  storage.  There  would  necessarily 
be  sufficient  advantage  in  reducing  the  area  flooded  to  more  than  pay 
the  cost  of  the  dams  necessary  to  create  such  reservoirs. 

Although  it  is  possible  that  investigation  might  show  some  favorable 
reservoir'  sites,  it  must  be  remembered  that  at  equal  depths  equal  areas 
will  be  overflowed  either  on  Illinois  bottom  lands  or  the  bottom  lands 
of  the  tributaries,  and  unless  it  can  be  shown  that  a  much  greater 
average  depth  can  be  secured  on  the  tributaries,  or  land  flooded  having 
much  less  value,  and  both  of  the  propositions  seem  doubtful,  there  would 
seem  to  be  no  net  gain  to  the  State  to  protect  certain  bottom  lands  of 
the  Illinois  at  the  expense  of  flooded  bottom  lands  elsewhere. 

FLOOD  PROTECTION  CONCLUSION. 

In  the  light  of  the  figures  upon  the  preceding  pages,  there  would 
seem  to  us  no  doubt  that  the  bottom  lands  will  be  most  economically 
protected  against  flood  by  increasing  the  heights  of  the  levees  sub¬ 
stantially  to  the  profile  marked  “L”  on  Figure  34. 

It  is  our  conclusion,  in  the  light  of  all  the  data  which  we  could  find, 
that  it  is  impracticable  to  effectively  use  bottom  land  storage  reservoirs 
for  the  mitigation  of  floods,  for  the  reason  that  more  effective  results 
can  be  secured  at  less  cost  through  increasing  the  heights  of  levees. 
This  takes  into  account  all  possible  gain  that  might  accrue  to  the 
fisheries  through  handling  the  bottom  land  reservoirs  in  such  manner 
that  they  will  assist  in  fish  propagation. 


— 9  R  L 


130 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIYER. 


BEST  USE  OF  REMAINING  LAKES  AND  LANDS. 

The  original  bottom  land  lakes  aggregated  49,340  acres  at  low 
water.  Levee  operations  have  up  to  the  present  time  reduced  this  lake 
area  to  about  31,600  acres.  There  are  about  22  meandered  lakes,  and 


Suggestion  for  Compromise  Levees 

NEAR 

Navigable  Lakes 


FIGURE  40. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


131 


possibly  more,  to  which  the  State  claims  title.  Table  41  is  a  list  of  the 
meandered  lakes  claimed  by  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  to  be 
public  waters.  It  is  stated  that  this  list  is  not  complete.  We  have  added 
opposite  the  name  of  each  lake  its  area  by  planimeter  measurements  from 
the  U.  S.  Engineer’s  Survey  Map. 

Excluding  Peoria  Lake,  which  we  have  included  in  the  area  of  the 
river  as  elsewhere  tabulated  herein,  these  lakes  aggregate.  7,002  acres, 
or  a  little  less  than  one-quarter  of  the  lakes  remaining  unleveed. 


TABLE  NO.  41— PARTIAL  LIST  OF  LAKES  ADJACENT  TO  ILLINOIS  RIVER  TO  WHICH 

THE  STATE  CLAIMS  TITLE. 


Area  in 


County. 

acres. 

Slough  near  Otter  Creek. . . 

.Jersey . 

450 

Macoupin  Slough . 

.Greene . 

24 

Slough  near  Van  Geson  Is 

land . 

.Greene . 

17 

Slough  near  Valley  City. . . 

.Pike . 

30 

Meredosia  Lake . 

.Scott-Cass _ 

1, 182 

Hickory  Slough  (near 

mouth  of  Sangamon  R.). Mason . 

25 

Lake  Depue . 

Bureau . 

Matanzas  Bay . 

Mason . 

346 

Dog  Fish  Lake  \ 

Mason . 

290 

Quiver  Lake. .  / 

Liverpool  Lake . 

.Mason . 

290 

Area  in 


Slough  four  miles 
Liverpool .  - . 

County. 

above 

acres. 

Clear  Lake  \ 

Mud  Lake/ 

810 

Spring  Lake . 

.  1,390 

Saiwell . 

42 

Pekin  Lake . 

244 

Gar  Lake  (near  Sparland). Tazewell _ 

59 

Huse  Slough  near  Peru. .  .La  Salle . 

59 

Pond  opposite  Peru. 

. La  Salle . 

21 

Thompson  Lake. . . . 

.  1, 723 

Total . 

.  7, 002 

INCLOSURE  OF  MEANDERED  LAKES. 

It  has  been  the  practice,  in  the  construction  of  the  levee  districts, 
to  build  the  levees  close  to  the  river,  thus  cutting  off  the  inland  lakes 
from  the  stream.  In  certain  places  the  title  to  the  land  surrounding  the 
lakes  may  be  held  by  private  individuals  who  desire  to  dyke  the  same, 
and  if  the  State  can  establish  its  title  to  the  lake  bed,  the  dyking  of 
lands  adjacent  to  the  large  lakes  will  be  very  expensive,  if  completely 
dyked,  the  dykes  being  very  long,  and  occupying  the  low  ground.  Fur¬ 
thermore,  the  lakes  thus  enclosed  will  be  of  little  value  for  the  propaga¬ 
tion  of  fish,  if  the  levees  are  built'  close  to  the  shore,  for  the  high  water 
levels  in  the  spring  and  the  higher  water  levels  prevailing  throughout  the 
season  hereafter  through  the  increased  drainage  canal  flows  will  rise 
upon  the  sides  of  the  levees,  thus  destroying  all  the  shallow  water  which 
is  so  advantageous  to  the  breeding  and  rearing  of  fish. 

The  suggestion  has  been  made  in  circumstances  such  as  these,  to 
compromise  with  the  land  owners  by  trading  a  portion  of  the  lake  bed 
for  a  portion  of  the  privately  held  land,  and  to  build  the  levees  sub¬ 
stantially  as  shown  by  line  B,  Figure  40;  thus  accomplishing  for  the 
land  owner  a  levee  of  reduced  cost,  with  reduced  cost  of  maintenance, 
and  accomplishing  for  the  public  a  lake  most  practicable  for  the  breeding 
and  taking  of  fish.  It  would  seem  that  this  suggestion  is  worthy  of  very 
serious  consideration  in  cases  where  applicable. 

In  the  storage  computations  which  we  have  previously  made,  we 
have  assumed  that  ultimately  practically  all  the  bottom  land  will  be 
under  levee.  This  may  require  a  long  time  for  accomplishment,  and  it 
is  quite  possible  that  there  are  some  areas  lying  so  low,  or  so  cut  up  by 
tributarv  streams,  as  to  be  uneconomical  of  reclamation. 

It  will  be  further  noted  that  certain  tracts  are  so  separated  by 
meandered  lakes  as  to  make  the  long  line  of  levees  required  so  expensive 
that  the  economy  of  reclamation  may  be  doubtful.  The  time  at  our 


132 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


disposal  has  obviously  not  permitted  an  examination  of  the  practicability 
of  dyking  these  individual  tracts.  It  is  strongly  recommended  that,  so 
far  as  possible,  these  unused  lands  and  lakes  be  used  for  the  betterment 
of  the  aquatic  life  of  the  river.  As  to  how  they  can  best  be  used  will 
probabty  be  a  subject  of  further  study  by  the  Department  of  Natural 
History. 

CLEAN  BANKS. 

Competent  observers  state  that  under  present  conditions  a  great 
amount  of  the  fish  spawn  is  being  destroyed  through  the  growth  of  fungi, 
occasioned  by  decaying  land  vegetation,  such  as  trees  and  brush 
that  have  been  permanently  inundated  and  killed  through  the  increased 
water  stages  since  1910.  We  have  heretofore  pointed  out  the  great 
desirability  of  clearing  the  bottoms,  except  for  a  narrow  wave  break  in 
those  sections  of  the  river  where  both  sides  of  the  stream  are  leveed,  in 
order  that  a  clear  waterway  for  the  flood  may  be  provided.  The  keeping 
of  these  lands  cleared  will  not  only  serve  to  provide  a  practicable  channel 
for  flood  waters  but  will  best  serve  the  needs  of  the  fishes.  With  the 
levees  placed  well  back  from  the  river  banks,  as  recommended  in  districts 
to  be  built  hereafter,  the  grounds  between  the  levees  and  the  river  bank, 
properly  cleared,  will  be  of  great  benefit  to  the  aquatic  life  of  the  stream. 

GAME  FISHING  AND  HUNTING. 

The  waters  of  the  Illinois  River  have  been  the  rendezvous  of  the 
sportsman — both  the  hunter  and  the  fisherman — for  many  years.  It  is 
too  much  to  expect  that  the  entire  river  bottoms  will  be  retained  in 
the  original  state  of  nature  in  order  to  furnish  recreation  grounds  for 
those  capable  of  benefiting  by  them.  In  general,  the  fate  of  these  bottoms 
will  doubtless  be  ultimately  decided  by  financial  considerations,  which,  as 
we  have  shown,  point  towards  agriculture  as  the  most  profitable  use  of  the 
bottoms,  commercially. 

It  is  hoped  that  future  studies  in  intensive  fish  culture  may  find  a 
way  to  keep  the  stream  stocked,  through  a  better  utilization  hereafter  of 
the  breeding  and  feeding  grounds  that  remain. 

Large  expenditures  are  being  made  by  cities,  and  the  U.  S.  Govern¬ 
ment  is  not  only  setting  aside  unused  lands  wherever  possible  for  play¬ 
grounds  for  the  people,  but  is  spending  considerable  sums  annually  for 
their  maintenance.  It  is  not  beyond  reason  that  the  State  of  Illinois 
should  obtain  such  bottom  lands  by  purchase  as  may  be  necessary  to  aug¬ 
ment  the  most  favorable  meandered  lake  holdings,  for  the  double  purpose 
of  studying,  and,  if  possible,  increasing  the  aquatic  life  of  the  stream, 
and  furnishing  state  parks  or  preserves,  in  which,  under  proper  re¬ 
strictions,  hunting  and  game  fishing  may  be  pursued,  and  which  will 
serve  as  nurseries  for  augmenting  the  commercial  fishery  of  the  stream 
generally. 

COOPERATION  WITH  THE  SANITARY  DISTRICT. 

It  is  generally  known  that  damage  suits,  aggregating  large  sums, 
have  been  filed  against  the  Sanitary  District  of  Chicago  for  damage  to 
Illinois  bottom  lands  through  the  increased  water  delivered  to  the  river 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES. 


133 


by  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal.  The  suggestion  has  been  made  for  the 
State  and  the  Sanitary  District  to  combine  in  the  purchase  of  the  lands 
damaged,  or  certain  of  them  as  might  be  most  useful  to  the  State  for  the 
purposes  heretofore  mentioned. 


FIGURE  41. 

River  Banks  at  Recent  Moderate  Water  Stages,  Showing  the  Dead  and  Decayed 

Land  Vegetacion. 


The  following  figures  are  taken  from  the  report  of  Mr.  Lyman  E. 
Cooley,  C.  E.,  entitled  “The  Illinois  River.  Physical  Relations  and  the 
removal  of  the  Navigation  Dams,”  August,  1914.  Mr.  Cooley  places  the 
expenditures  of  the  Sanitary  District  to  date  on  the  Illinois'  and  Des 
Plaines  Rivers  in  payment  of  land  damages,  the  expenditures  of  the  Engi¬ 
neering  Department  in  preparation  for  defense  of  suits,  and  the  expendi¬ 
tures  of  the  legal  department,  at  between  $500,000  and  $600,000  up  to 
December  31,  1912. 


TABLE  NO.  42— CLAIMS  AGAINST  SANITARY  DISTRICT  ON  ACCOUNT  OF  DAMAGES 

FROM  OVERFLOW  ENDING  DECEMBER  31,  1912. 


Permanent  damage. 

Temporary  damage. 

Total. 

Claims. 

Amount. 

Claims. 

Amount. 

Claims. 

Amount. 

Utica  to  Havana . 

122 

82, 474,  400 

46 

S  434,900 

168 

82,909,300 

Havana  to  La  Grange . 

2 

33,330 

108 

1, 118, 350 

110 

1, 151,610 

La  Grange  to  Mouth  . 

5 

469,  000 

1 

10,000 

6 

479,000 

Totals . 

129 

82, 976, 730 

155 

$1, 563,  250 

284 

84, 539, 980 

The  total  claims  pending  against  the  district  for  damage  on  account 
of  overflowed  land  up  to  December  31,  1912,  upon  the  Illinois  River 
below  Utica,  amount  to  a  total  of  $4,539,980.  The  principal  details  of 
these  claims  are  shown  upon  Table  42,  herewith. 


134 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


The  total  of  the  land  and  lakes  in  the  Illinois  Eiver  bottoms  outside 
of  the  districts  at  present  leveed,  amounts  to  219,760  acres  below  the 
flood  plane  of  1844,  and  195,000  acres  below  the  flood  plane  of  1904.  The 
total  damage  claims  as  stated  are  equivalent  to  $20.20  per  acre  below  the 
1844  flood  plane  and  $22.80  per  acre  below  the  flood  plane  of  1904. 

If  we  exclude  the  lake  beds  outside  the  levee  districts,  amounting  to 
31,600  acres,  the  total  of  the  damage  claims  per  acre  would  be  $24.00 
and  $27.80  per  acre  for  the  land  below  the  flood  planes  of  1844  and 
1904,  respectivel}’,  or  if  we  exclude  from  the  acreage  of  land  those  acres 
for  the  protection  of  which  levee  districts  are  now  projected,  the  land 
acreage  will  be  reduced  by  an  additional  amount  of  49,250  acres,  and  the 
total  of  the  damage  claims  per  acre,  respectively,  below  the  1844  flood 
plane  and  the  flood  plane  of  1904,  would  be  $32.75  and  $39.70  per  acre 
-of  land.  / 

The  report  above  referred  to  further  states : 

“The  additional  claims  preferred  but  not  yet  entered  of  suit  will 
raise  the  total  to  about  eight  million  dollars.” 

Eight  million  dollars  in  damages  will  serve  to  nearly  double  the 
figures  above  mentioned. 

With  regard  to  the  value  of  the  bottom  lands,  as  has  been  previously 
stated  in  this  report,  those  lands  leveed  along  the  Illinois  Eiver  are  held 
at  from  $100  to  $150  per  acre.  The  unreclaimed  low  bottoms  are  of 
uncertain  value.  It  is  said  that  much  of  this  land  is  held  at  about  $15 
per  acre.  Within  25  years  past  it  is  probable  that  all  the  land  in  the 
bottoms  could  have  been  purchased  at  from  $5  to  $10  per  acre. 

In  the  light  of  all  these  figures,  it  would  seem  that  lands  of  con¬ 
siderable  value  to  the  phblic  might  be  secured  by  the  State  through 
cooperation  with  the  Sanitary  District,  thus  relieving  the  District  from 
at  least  a  part  of  the  heavy  damage  claims  against  it,  and  securing  to  the 
public  permanent  and  undisputed  possession  of  land  well  adapted  to  assist 
in  the  maintenance  of  the  aquatic  life  of  the  river  and  at  the  same  time  to 
form  state  parks  or  state  preserves  that  would  accrue  to  the  benefit  of  the 
public  generally. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 

This  investigation,  particularly  so  far  as  it  relates  to  natural  history, 
would  have  been  impossible  except  for  the  services  of  Prof.  Stephen  A. 
Forbes  of  the  State  Laboratory  of  Natural  History,  who  from  the  begin¬ 
ning  of  the  investigation  has  advised  us  on  all  matters  pertaining  to  his 
department. 

We  are  further  indebted  to  Mr.  L.  K.  Sherman,  C.  E.,  Engineer 
Member  of  the  Eivers  and  Lakes  Commission,  for  valuable  criticism  and 
data;  to  Mr.  E.  E.  Eichardson,  in  charge  of  the  Biological  station  at 
Havana,  for  much  valuable  information  regarding  the  fisheries;  to  Prof. 
J.  G.  Mosier,  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  State  University,  who 
accompanied  us  upon  our  inspection  trip  and  from  whom  we  learned  much 
relating  to  the  agriculture  of  the  bottom  lands.  We  are  further  indebted 
to  the  members  of  the  Eivers  and  Lakes  Commission  and  the  Fish  and 
Game  Commission,  who  also  accompanied  us  upon  our  first  inspection 
trip. 


DISCUSSION  OF  REMEDIES.  135 

The  investigations  relating  to  agriculture  and  the  agricultural  levee 
districts  were  conducted  by  Prof.  Leslie  A.  Waterbury,  under  our  general 
direction  and  we  are  indebted  to  our  assistant,  Mr.  R.  T.  Reilly,  for  much 
painstaking  work  in  the  intricate  hydraulic  calculations  relating  to  the 
flood  waterways. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

John  W.  Alvord. 

Chas.  B.  Burdick. 

Engineers . 


Chicago,  Llinois,  July  24,  1915. 


APPENDIX  I. 


Chicago,  May  5,  1915. 

Hon.  Edward  F.  Dunne,  Governor  of  Illinois,  Spring  field,  III. 

Dear  Sir:  The  undersigned,  the  Divers  and  Lakes  Commission  of 
the  State  of  Illinois,  respectfully  submits  the  following  as  their  findings 
as  to  the  public  character  of  Thompson  Lake,  a  public  body  of  water 
located  in  Fulton  County,  Illinois,  and  their  recommendations  in  relation 
to  the  same. 

Section  13  of  the  law  creating  the  commission  and  describing  its 
powers  and  duties  is  as  follows : 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  commission  to  make  a  careful  investigation 
of  each  and  every  body  of  water,  both  river  and  lake,  in  the  State  of  Illinois, 
and  to  ascertain  to  what  extent,  if  at  all,  the  same  have  been  encroached 
upon  by  private  interests  or  individuals,  and  wherever  they  believe  that  the 
same  have  been  so  encroached  upon,  to  commence  appropriate  action  either 
to  recover  full  compensation  for  such  wrongful  encroachment,  or  to  recover 
the  use  of  the  same,  or  of  any  lands  improperly  or  unlawfully  made  in  con¬ 
nection  with  any  public  river  or  lake  for  the  use  of  the  people  of  the  State 
of  Illinois.  The  right  and  authority  hereby  given  and  created  shall  not  be 
held  to  be  exclusive  or  to  take  from  the  Attorney  General,  or  any  other  law 
officer  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  the  right  to  commence  suit  or  action. 

The  commission  adopted  the  following  resolution: 

Whereas,  Thompson  Lake,  situate  in  the  townships  of  Waterford  and 
Liverpool  in  the  county  of  Fulton  in  the  State  of  Illinois,  is  a  body  of  water 
about  six  mires  in  length  and  from  three-quarters  of  a  mile  to  a  mile  and  a 
half  in  width,  and  one  of  the  largest  permanent  bodies  of  water  in  the  State 
of  Illinois,  exclusive  of  Lake  Michigan,  and  connected  with  the  Illinois  River 
by  an  inlet  or  outlet  so-called;  and, 

Whereas,  Said  lake  is  claimed  to  be  a  navigable  body  of  water  and  the 
best  fish  propagating  and  fish  producing  body  of  water  in  the  State,  as  well 
as  a  suitable,  desirable  and  popular  place  of  resort  for  navigation,  fishing, 
hunting  and  the  like,  and  for  recreation  for  the  people  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  by  reason  whereof  the  said  lake  is  of  great  value  to  the  people  of 
the  State  and  a  body  of  water  in  which  the  people  of  the  State  claim  an 
interest;  and 

Whereas,  It  is  claimed  by  the  people  of  the  State  that  the  title  to  the 

bed  of  said  lake  is  in  the  State  of  Illinois  in  trust  for  all  the  people  of  the 

State;  and 

Whereas,  The  ownership  and  title  to  the  bed  of  said  lake  is  claimed  by 
certain  individuals,  nearly  all  of  whom  are  nonresidents  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  and  said  individuals  are  assuming  to  be  entitled  to  the  possession 
and  enjoyment  of  said  lake  and  its  facilities  for  navigation,  fishing,  hunting 
and  the  like,  and  for  recreation  to  the  exclusion  of  the  people  and  public  of 
said  State;  and 

Whereas,  It  is  the  duty  of  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  of  the 
State  of  Illinois  to  protect  the  people  of  the  State  in  their  use  and  enjoy¬ 
ment  of  all  of  the  public  waters  of  the  State  and  to  see  to  it  that  the 

same  are  not  encroached  upon  nor  appropriated  by  private  interests  or 
individuals;  and 

Whereas,  Said  commission  is  by  law  vested  with  the  power  and  juris¬ 
diction  to  investigate  conflicting  claims  with  reference  to  the  waters  of  the 

136 


APPENDIX  I. 


137 


State  and  to  determine,  by  public  bearings,  with  reference  to  any  of  the  bodies 
of  water  in  the  State  whether,  under  all  the  facts  and  circumstances  and  the 
law,  they  are  of  such  a  character  as  to  constitute  the  same  public  waters  of 
the  State  in  which  all  the  people  have  an  interest  and  to  make,  enter  and 
promulgate  such  orders  in  accordance  with  their  findings  of  facts  as  a  result 
of  such  hearings;  now,  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  of  the  State  of  Illinois, 
pursuant  to  statute  in  such  case  made  and  provided,  investigate  the  question 
as  to  the  public  character  of  said  Thompson  Lake,  and  that  to  that  end  a 
public  hearing  be  held  by  said  commission  in  the  city  hall  in  the  city  of 
Havana  in  the  county  of  Mason  in  the  State  of  Illinois,  commencing  on  the 
10th  day  of  March,  A.  D.  1915,  at  the  hour  of  10  o’clock  in  the  forenoon,  and 
continuing  from  day  to  day  or  from  time  to  time,  according  to  the  orders  of 
this  commission,  as  the  exigencies  of  the  case  may  require,  and  that  said 
commission  will  receive  and  consider  evidence  of  all  facts,  history,  circum¬ 
stances  and  matters  bearing  upon  the  question  as  to  the  public  character  of 
said  Thompson  Lake  and  the  title  of  the  State  to  the  bed  thereof  and  the 
interest  of  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois  therein,  and  will  at  the  close 
of  said  hearing  make  such  findings  and  enter  such  order  as  the  evidence 
submitted  and  received  on  said  hearing  and  the  matters  and  things  within 
the  knowledge  of  said  commission  shall  require;  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  a  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  the  commencement  of 
said  hearing  and  the  nature  of  the  same  be  published  for  three  consecutive 
weeks  in  some  newspaper  of  general  circulation  published  in  the  vicinity  of 
said  Thompson  Lake,  and,  further,  that  a  written  notice  of  the  time  and 
place  of  the  commencement  of  said  hearing  be  served  personally  upon  each 
of  the  persons  who  claim,  either  by  himself  or  together  with  others  asso¬ 
ciated  with  him,  to  have  title  to  and  ownership  in  the  lands  underlying  the 
waters  of  said  Thompson  Lake,  or  any  part  thereof. 

Hearings  were  held  by  the  commission  from  time  to  time  at  Chicago 
and  Havana,  Illinois,  where  witnesses  were  heard  and  documentary  evi¬ 
dence  considered.  The  commission  reports  and  certifies  the  following: 

Thompson  Lake  is  the  greatest,  if  not  the  most  valuable,  body  of  water 
within  the  State  of  Illinois.  It  is  said  to  be  the  best  spawning  ground  for 
the  feeding  and  advancement  of  fish  life  that  there  is  in  the  State.  It  pro¬ 
duces  millions  of  pounds  of  fish  annually,  and  sustains  a  large  portion  of  our 
population,  especially  the  people  residing  in  the  cities  of  Pekin,  Havana,  and 
Peoria  engaged  in  the  fish  business.  It  is  steadily  enhancing  in  value  to  the 
advantage  of  these  people  as  well  as  to  the  State  as  the  provider  of  a  great 
and  prosperous  industry. 

Thompson  Lake  was  surveyed  by  the  U.  S.  Government  partially  in 
1817,  partially  in  1827,  and  finally  in  1842.  It  extends  in  a  southerly  and 
northerly  direction  about  six  miles,  being  connected  with  the  Illinois  River 
by  an  inlet  about  two  miles  south  of  Liverpool,  Illinois,  known  as  the  Thomp¬ 
son  Lake  slough,  and  an  outlet  at  the  south  end  of  said  lake  almost  opposite 
the  city  of  Havana  in  the  State  of  Illinois  known  as  the  “cut  road.”  From 
the  survey  and  field  notes  introduced  in  evidence,  and  the  testimony  of  expert 
witnesses,  as  well  as  the  exhibits,  it  appears  that  the  lines  established  in 
these  surveys  constituted  what  is  known  as  meander  lines  and  positive 
boundary  lines  of  Thompson  Lake.  It  appears  from  the  testimony  that  as 
far  back  as  the  memory  of  one  of  the  oldest  living  men  in  the  vicinity  of 
Thompson  Lake,  or  Fulton  and  Mason  counties,  that  it  was  used  for  com¬ 
mercial  navigation  for  many  years.  Products  and  freight,  such  as  grain, 
horses,  cattle,  wood,  coal  and  building  material,  were  shipped  from  the  west 
side  of  the  lake  to  one  of  the  inlets  of  the  river  and  thence  to  Chicago,  Peoria, 
Pekin  and  Havana;  also  to  St.  Louis,  Missouri. 

Harry  S.  New,  Alexander  C.  Ayres  et  al.,  residents  of  the  state  of 
Indiana,  claim  to  be  owners  of  the  bed  of  Thompson  Lake  and  in  order  to 
quiet  their  title  filed  a  bill  in  equity  in  the  Circuit  Court  of  Fulton  County 
against  one  William  Shafer  and  others.  The  complainants  endeavored  to 
make  the  State  of  Illinois  a  defendant  in  this  proceeding,  but  the  decree 
entered  by  the  court  in  Fulton  County  (a  copy  of  which  is  in  the  possession 
of  the  Attorney  General)  made  no  finding  as  to  the  rights  of  the  people  of 


138 


REPORT  ON  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


the  State  of  Illinois  in  said  lake,  but  did  expressly  exempt  the  State  of 
Illinois.  The  court  also  made  a  finding  in  favor  of  Harry  S.  New  and  others, 
of  Indiana,  as  to  their  rights  and  interests  in  the  land  over  which  Thompson 
Lake  flows  as  against  the  several  defendants  named  in  the  decree.  These 
parties  are  the  incorporators  and  members  of  what  is  known  as  the  “Thomp¬ 
son  Lake  Rod  and  Gun  Club,”  a"  corporation  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of 
Illinois  composed  entirely  of  members  from  the  state  of  Indiana. 

The  testimony  introduced  and  copies  of  documents,  deeds,  etc.,  read  be¬ 
fore  the  commission  and  placed  in  our  record,  disclose  that  Harry  S.  New 
et  al.,  did  not  hold  all  of  the  abutting  lands  adjoining  Thompson  Lake  to 
the  meander  lines  of  said  lake  in  fee  simple  (as  he  and  his  cocomplainants 
claim  in  their  bill  filed  in  Fulton  County).  It  appears  that  they  have  no 
title  in  fee  to  large  tracts  of  this  land,  as  disclosed  from  the  abstract  pre¬ 
pared  by  us.  This  abstract  will  show  that  no  such  fee  simple  title,  or  in  fact 
any  title,  could  lodge  in  these  complaints.  The  record  will  further  show 
that  in  every  instance  the  land  abutting  Thompson  Lake  was  conveyed  to  the 
water’s  edge  only  and,  therefore,  could  not  affect  the  title  of  what  is  called 
the  bed  of  Thompson  Lake. 

The  evidence  also  discloses  that  all  of  the  surveys  which  were  made  from 
1817  down  to  the  present  date  contain  a  sharp  marked  water  line,  declaring 
Thompson  Lake  to  be  a  lake,  although  it  appears  from  an  examination  of 
the  plats  of  survey  that  direct  section  lines  were  drawn  across  this  body  of 
water  as  if  it  had  been  a  survey  of  land.  This  has  been  explained  by  com¬ 
petent  evidence  that  the  reason  for  the  laying  of  section  corners  in  the  lake 
was  because  the  surveys  were  made  during  the  winter  when  there  was  suffi¬ 
cient  ice  to  carry  the  surveying  crew  and,  therefore,  it  was  easier  to  draw 
the  straight  lines  of  the  sections  across  the  ice  than  it  would  have  been  by 
calculations  had  the  surveys  been  made  in  the  summer.  In  other  words,  it 
was  for  the  convenience  of  the  surveyors  and  to  their  financial  advantage 
because  at  the  time  they  were  paid  for  their  work  by  the  mile. 

It  appears  that  the  inlet  and  outlet  known  as  the  Thompson  Lake  slough 
and  the  “cut  road”  have  existed  for  all  time  as  a  connection  between  the  lake 
and  the  Illinois  River;  that  the  upper  inlet,  or  Thompson  Lake  slough,  has 
always  been  deep  enough  and  wide  enough  to  permit  craft  of  various  kinds, 
including  steamboats  drawing  as  much  as  4 y2  feet  of  water,  to  enter  the  lake 
from  the  Illinois  River,  or  enter  the  Illinois  River  from  the  lake,  and  that 
during  low  water  stages  commercial  craft  could  navigate  in  Thompson  Lake 
when  they  could  not  do  so  in  parts  of  the  Illinois  River. 

We  quote  the  following  paragraph  from  the  report  of  the  Submerged 
and  Shore  Lands  Legislative  Investigating  Committee,  page  170,  prepared 
under  the  direction  of  the  Hon.  B.  M.  Chiperfield,  chairman: 

“From  an  investigation  it  is  apparent  that  this  lake  has  been  subject 
to  navigation  for  useful  commerce  for  many  years,  and  if  this  assumption 
is  true,  it  is  without  question  the  property  of  the  State  of  Illinois.” 

We  have  concluded  that  should  either  the  county  judge  or  the  county 
clerk  of  Fulton  County  attempt  to  convey  the  land  lying  under  this  lake 
within  the  lines  established  by  United  States  government  surveys  of  1817, 
1827  and  1842,  that  the  said  deeds  or  decree  affecting  this  land  would  be 
void,  and  our  investigation  leads  us  to  believe  that  the  lake  within  these 
lines  could  not  be  a  part  of  such  lands  as  could  be  conveyed  under  what  is 
known  as  the  “Swamp  Act”  (which  was  contended  in  the  Fulton  County 
Court),  because  the  ownership  of  the  lake  at  the  time  was  in  the  State  of 
Illinois  prior  to  the  creation  of  what  is  known  as  the  Swamp  Act  of  1850 
and  prior  to  the  admission  of  the  State  of  Illinois  into  the  Union  of  States 
in  1818.  It  is  our  conclusion  that  it  is  one  of  the  bodies  of  water  which  has 
been  exempt  from  the  effect  of  this  Swamp  Act  although  (accidentally) 
embraced  in  the  description  given  by  the  then  United  States  government 
officials. 

Our  investigation  of  Thompson  Lake  causes  us  to  believe  that  the 
attempt  of  Harry  S.  New,  Alexander  C.  Ayres  et  al.,  the  respondents  who 
claim  title  to  the  bed  of  this  lake,  has  been  from  its  inception  an  attempt 
on  their  part  to  take  from  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois  a  large  tract 
of  valuable  public  property  without  compensation  and  to  destroy  a  great 
industry,  namely,  the  propagation  of  fish  life,  for  the  purpose  of  draining 


APPENDIX  I. 


139 


the  lake  and  converting  it  to  their  own  private  ownership  and  use:  These 
parties  have  sought  to  prevent  the  commission,  on  two  different  occasions, 
from  investigating  the  public  character  of  this  lake.  On  one  occasion,  when 
a  hearing  was  set  by  the  commission,  they  secured  an  injunction  against 
William  Shafer  and  others  from  appearing  before  the  commission  after  they 
had  been  subpoenaed,  as  provided  by  law.  On  another  occasion,  the  day 
before  the  last  hearing  at  Havana,  Illinois,  the  attorneys  representing  the 
same  parties  appeared  before  his  honor  Judge  Landis  in  the  United  States 
District  Court  and  sought  to  have  the  commission  enjoined  from  proceeding 
with  its  investigation  of  the  public  character  of  this  lake.  Their  bill  was 
dismissed  by  the  court. 

We,  therefore,  in  consideration  of  all  the  facts  and  circumstances  in 
connection  with  the  public  character  of  Thompson  Lake,  conclude  that  the 
people  of  the  State  of  Illinois  have  great  rights  and  interests  in  this  lake; 
that  its  integrity  as  a  public  body  of  water  should  be  preserved,  and  in  view 
of  the  litigation  between  the  parties  and  the  great  importance  of  the  same, 
as  evidenced  by  the  decree  entered,  we  recommend  that  the  proper  officers 
of  the  State  institute  promptly  the  necessary  legal  proceedings  to  quiet  the 
title  of  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois  to  the  land  over  which  said  lake 
flows,  or  to  institute  and  take  such  other  action  as  may  be  deemed  to  be 
proper  to  protect  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  people  of  the  State  of 
Illinois  in  said  lake. 

All  parties  in  interest,  Harry  S.  New,  Alexander  C.  Ayres,  and  others, 
were  notified  by  subpoena  issued  by  the  commission  to  be  present  and  take 
part  in  the  hearings  held  at  Havana  and  Chicago,  Illinois. 

Maps,  plats  of  surveys,  field  notes  and  record  of  evidence  are  on  file  in 
the  office  of  the  commission  and  may  be  had  upon  request. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

Arthur  W.  Charles,  Chairman; 

LeRoy  K.  Sherman,  Commissioner ; 

Thomas  J.  Healy,  Commissioner. 


APPENDIX  II. 


REMOVAL  OF  DAMS  IN  THE  ILLINOIS  RIVER. 


(From  annual  report  of  1914.) 

The  Illinois  Association  of  Drainage  and  Levee  Districts  and  similar 
organizations  have  at  various  times  passed  resolutions  demanding  the 
removal  of  the  four  dams  in  the  lower  Illinois  River.  The  Sanitary 
District  of  Chicago  has  at  various  times  made  attempts  to  have  these 
dams  removed.  Considered  solely  from  the  standpoint  of  drainage  and 
land  overflow,  these  dams  should  be  removed  at  once. 

Section  23  of  the  act  of  1889  to  create  sanitary  districts  and  to 
remove  obstructions  in  the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  River  recites  as 
follows : 

“The  district  *  *  *  shall  remove  the  dams  at  Henry  and  Copperas 

Creek  in  the  Illinois  River  before  any  water  shall  be  turned  into  said 
channel.  And  the  canal  commissioners,  if  they  shall  find  at  any  time  that 
an  additional  supply  of  water  has  been  added  to  either  of  said  rivers,  by  any 
drainage  district  or  districts,  to  maintain  a  depth  of  not  less  than  six  feet 
from  any  dam  owned  by  the  State,  to  and  into  the  first  lock  of  the  Illinois 
and  Michigan  Canal  at  LaSalle  without'  the  aid  of  any  such  dam,  at  low 
water,  then  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  canal  commissioners  to  cause  such 
dam  or  dams  to  be  removed.” 

After  the  attempt  by  the  Sanitary  District  to  remove  these  dams  the 
Supreme  Court  held  (Vol.  184,  Ill.,  page  157)  that  the  clause  in  section 
23  of  the  Sanitary  District  Act  was  not  mandatory  but  permissive,  and 
that  the  dams  could  not  be  removed  until  an  equivalent  navigable  depth 
is  available  without  the  aid  of  the  dams.  The  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commis¬ 
sion  has  made  computations  and  investigated  the  flow  records  and  profile 
of  the  Illinois  River,  and  finds  that  if  the  pending  litigation  of  the  Sani¬ 
tary  District  in  the  Federal  courts  shall  limit  the  flow  of  the  Chicago 
Drainage  Canal  to  4,167  cubic  feet  per  second,  and,  furthermore,  if  no 
dredging  or  channel  improvement  is  undertaken,  the  removal  of  the  four 
dams  in  the  Illinois  River  will  decrease  the  depth  of  water  to  much  less 
than  6  feet  in  numerous  places  to  the  great  detriment  of  navigation.  It 
would  be  deplorable  to  thje  State  of  Illinois  to  have  the  flow  limited  to 
4,167  cubic  feet  per  second,  but  at  the  present  time  the  fact  must  be  met 
that  such  a  condition  may  possibly  exist.  We,  therefore,  do  not  advocate 
the  unconditional  removal  of  these  dams  at  the  present  time. 

The  next  question  is,  can  the  dams  now  be  removed  providing  com¬ 
pensating  channel  improvements  be  made?  On  page  18  of  a  Report  by 
a  Board  of  Officers  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  II.  S.  Army  upon  a 
navigable  waterway  through  the  Illinois  River,  Document  263,  59th  Con¬ 
gress,  First  Session,  signed  by  Col.  Ernst,  Lieut.  Col.  Bixbv  and  Major 
Casey,  the  following  statement  is  made: 

140 


APPENDIX  II. 


141 


“The  additional  flow  provided  by  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  is  now 
4,200  cubic  feet  per  second.  It  will  allow  the  removal  of  the  present  locks 
and  dams,  and  it  makes  practicable  the  maintenance  of  an  open  channel 
considerably  deeper  than  the  seven  feet  now  provided  by  these  structures.” 

Our  computations  are  in  accord  with  this  statement,  but  we  find  that 
considerable  dredging  and  channel  regulation  work  will  be  required  to 
accomplish  the  above  results.  The  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission  recom¬ 
mends  and  advises  as  follows: 

1.  The  four  State  and  Federal  dams  in  the  Illinois  River  between  Utica 
and  the  Mississippi  River  should  be  removed,  subject  to  the  provision  that 
the  dredging  and  channel  improvement  necessary  to  secure  a  minimum 
depth  of  7  feet  is  insured. 

2.  The  Sanitary  District  of  Chicago  should  be  permitted  to  remove  the 
Henry  and  Copperas  Creek  dams,  subject  to  specific  stipulations  as  to  dredg¬ 
ing  regulations  by  the  State  through  the  Rivers  and  Lakes  Commission,  or 
other  authorized  State  agency. 

3.  The  Federal  appropriation  of  $1,000,000  for  the  improvement  of  the 
Illinois  River  (section  1  of  the  Rivers  and  Harbors  Act,  approved  June  5, 
1910,  is  now  legally  available  and  should  be  appropriated  at  once  to  dredge 
the  lower  Illinois  River  so  that  the  government  dams  at  La  Grange  and 
Kampsville  may  be  removed  and  a  navigable  depth  of  8  feet  be  secured 
without  such  structures. 


\ 


